


The Road Less Travelled By

by AshenSkies (clarypuff)



Category: Naruto
Genre: And Lots of It, BAMF!Gaara, BAMF!Naruto, Eventual Happy Ending, I wrote this before anything Danzo- or Obito-related came out in canon, M/M, but not TOO overpowered, character introspection, so please excuse any glaring canon inconsistencies
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-11
Updated: 2020-09-22
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:28:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 32,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25841377
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/clarypuff/pseuds/AshenSkies
Summary: Five years ago, Naruto brought Sasuke back, but his only reward was anger and too much loneliness to bear -- and so he chose the other, previously unthinkable road.He left.Now it is Kitsune, strong and deadly, who returns to his old village with the Kazekage at his side. It is Kitsune who is determined to leave his past behind, but what happens when his past refuses to stay? It is the Kazekage who must be strong for his village and its allies, but what happens when it is Gaara who quietly breaks? When war erupts with Konoha at its heart, their resolve will be put to the test once and for all.
Relationships: Gaara/Uzumaki Naruto, a little bit of Kakashi/Iruka, a little bit of Kurama/Shukaku
Comments: 57
Kudos: 149
Collections: Anime & Manga FFs





	1. Prologue

_Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,  
And sorry I could not travel both  
And be one traveller, long I stood  
And looked down one as far as I could  
To where it bent in the undergrowth;_

_Then took the other, as just as fair,  
And having perhaps the better claim,  
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;  
Though as for that the passing there  
Had worn them really about the same,_

_And both that morning equally lay  
In leaves no step had trodden black.  
Oh, I kept the first for another day!  
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,  
I doubted if I should ever come back._

_I shall be telling this with a sigh  
Somewhere ages and ages hence:  
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—  
I took the one less travelled by,  
And that has made all the difference._

\-- Robert Frost, _The Road Not Taken_

* * *

When Naruto awoke, there was no one beside him.

He blinked at the dull white ceiling and the slowly whirring fan in its middle for a while as memories paraded themselves before his eyes, and pain marched through what seemed to be every part of his body. Then, slowly and carefully, he sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. He had questions that could not wait.

It was night, and the hallways of the hospital were empty of visitors and staff. Halfway down the corridor he had emerged into, the name on a door caught his eye. He turned from his path and opened the door softly.

Chouji was an unnervingly still figure underneath the covers, in the bed, but he wasn’t alone. Naruto could make out a ponytail sticking out at right angles from a second slumped figure’s head, and a longer one trailing over a third figure’s back. With Shikamaru’s intelligence, and Ino’s stubbornness, they would’ve had no problems finding a way around the rules that forbid visitors after hospital hours. Team 10 might argue incessantly, but in the picture they formed in the shadowed room their bond was clear.

Naruto closed the door as silently as he’d opened it, but his resumed track down the hall was halted again two doors down by the names on the door – two names this time. He turned the knob and peered in.

Unlike Chouji’s, the second bed in this room was occupied. Neji’s fall of dark brown hair was black in the moonlight, as black as Lee’s, in the bed next to him; as black as Gai’s, sprawled ungracefully in a chair in the corner of the room, his mouth wide open in sleep. Tenten’s light brown hair was grey, and she herself barely visible curled up on a mattress tucked against the wall.

Five doors further down the hallway revealed Kiba, the sheets twisted around him, the white of his bandages sharper than the white of the cotton covers. Akamaru was curled up at the foot of the bed, Hinata curled up in the middle of the other bed. Clutched in her hand was a half-finished needlework symbol – Naruto squinted –that was supposed to bring good health. A closer examination of the room found Shino, hidden in his cloak and the shadows in the corner of the room.

So. Shikamaru and Chouji, Kiba, Neji. All were alive. Naruto felt a great weight lift from his shoulders. They were all _alive_ , and apparently doing pretty okay, if they were in normal hospital rooms and not the ICU rooms.

Which left –

There was no one at the nurses’ station, so Naruto quickly located the patients’ records. To his surprise, Sasuke’s was at the top of the pile. Victory warred with an immense relief in his chest – he had _succeeded_ , they had actually _succeeded_! Flipping through the papers, Naruto realized that his teammate had come very close to getting killed, but judging from the pain in his own body, still unhealed even with the Kyuubi’s abilities, Sasuke had returned the favour.

Sasuke’s room was at the end of the corridor, in the single-patient rooms. Standing before the door, Naruto took a deep breath, and another, before he finally reached out and turned the knob, pushing the door open.

Sakura was slumped asleep over the side of Sasuke’s bed, like Ino in Chouji’s room. Shikamaru’s presence was replaced by Kakashi’s. The Jounin snapped awake, looking up from his seat by the window, and surprise flashed across his one visible eye when he saw Naruto, but it was quickly hidden away. He stood up and stretched gracefully, nodding to the blond.

Naruto’s chest felt tight, and it wasn’t just that Sasuke looked half-dead, lying white and bruised in the bed. He refused to think about it, though; refused to give in to his emotions. He’d had lots of practice for that, at least, so when he nodded back to Kakashi, his smile was in place, though it was wan.

Kakashi gestured to the door, clearly wanting to speak with Naruto without disturbing the other two. They were interrupted by Sakura stirring, though, coming awake in a start when she saw Kakashi standing. “Kakashi-sensei…?” she murmured, confused.

Then she turned her head, and saw Naruto, and the world went white.

When the explosion of agony cleared, static fading from his vision, Naruto could only stare, utterly lost and hurting, at Sakura being restrained by Kakashi. Her eyes, her face – there were so many emotions that it made Naruto dizzy, weariness and fear and hopelessness and betrayal and pain. What cut the deepest, though, was the hate.

His hearing was coming back, and he realized that Sakura was half-screaming, half-hissing at him. “… _bring him back, not try to kill him! If he hadn’t been Sasuke, he’d be dead! He’s lying there in a coma while you’re running around almost healed –_ ”

“Enough!” Kakashi said sharply, shaking the girl hard so that she was forced to stop talking or risk biting her own tongue. To the frightened nurse at the door, he said curtly, “I’ll make sure they keep quiet. Please leave.”

Too cowed to protest, the nurse quickly left. Even before the door fully closed, Kakashi was forcing Sakura down back into her chair, speaking to her quietly but furiously. “We both understand that you’re exhausted and overwhelmed, and seeing Sasuke in his condition isn’t helping, but that still gives you _no right_ to talk like that to someone who risked his very _life_ to bring Sasuke back to us. You know as well as I do that if Naruto had another choice he wouldn’t have hurt Sasuke this much, and besides he’s always healed more quickly than anyone. _Use that brain_ of yours, Sakura!”

Sakura looked away. She didn’t apologise for hitting Naruto or for her words, but neither did she continue, and for that Naruto was grateful, though the feeling was distant. He felt like he’d just taken an impossibly huge blow; he couldn’t think, could feel himself going blank, detached. It was funny, really; she’d never managed to put him off when he’d really liked her, but now that his feelings for her in that way had faded to friendship, she managed to wound him the most.

Funny. Yeah.

And then Sasuke sat up, effectively freezing everyone in the room. None of them had noticed him wake. He stared at Sakura for a heartbeat, and she stared back; he stared at Kakashi for two, and he stared back. Then his gaze came to lock with Naruto’s for decidedly longer than a heartbeat or two or three, and Naruto stared back blankly.

When Sasuke finally spoke, it made everyone jump. “May I have a word alone with Naruto?”

It was all terribly polite, and as cold, colder, than the night air crisp through the window; his eyes were dark, black, unreadable. Sakura nodded jerkily, pushing Kakashi’s hands away and leaving the room without another word; Kakashi hesitated, but at Naruto’s almost imperceptible nod sighed heavily and left as well, but didn’t close the door entirely. They could sense that he was far away enough to not overhear, though, if they spoke quietly.

So when Sasuke spoke, it was very quietly indeed. Every word cut deep, and through the haze Naruto saw the refined hatred in those black eyes and knew that each word had been carefully _created_ to hurt, to wound.

“I meant every word I said to you in that valley. It was _my_ decision! You had no right to try to decide my life for me. Did you think I was going to be grateful for the so-called rescue? What can you do for me but hold me back? The greatest of your power isn’t even yours.”

 _He knows_.

“Of course I know,” Sasuke said coldly. “I’ve fought you and with you enough times, and your choice of animal when you were fighting that sand freak was a huge clue. Then in the Valley of the End, the shape your chakra took was obvious, and that was the final clue. Do you realize how hypocritical that is? You’re drawing on something else for power, something evil. Who are you to try to stop me?”

 _He’s right_ , Naruto realized, stunned. He’d been relying on Kyuubi’s power, even though it wasn’t on purpose most of the time, and the Kyuubi was a demon, just as evil as Orochimaru, perhaps more…

“I’m an avenger. I’ve told you time and again. It’s the only purpose I have left. Are you going to take away my purpose? It’s the same thing as if I tried to stop you from becoming Hokage. If you stand in my way again, I will kill you. We both know I almost succeeded this time. You are no friend of mine, Uzumaki Naruto. Once, maybe… I admit that. Not anymore.”

And that was that.

Naruto dredged up a grin from the depths of his white and buzzing mind. “Sure,” was all he could manage to actually _say_ , though.

The look Sasuke gave him was suspicious, a hint of his previous self showing through, and it made Naruto glad to see it, even after everything. “Sure?” he repeated. “You complete idiot, did you not hear a word I just said?”

“Yeah. You said you once considered me a friend.”

“Dobe –”

“So did I.”

It made Sasuke blink, at any rate. Naruto found his vision blurring, this time with tears, but he held them back with effort and a smile that somehow came easier than before. “I considered you almost a brother, I just never acknowledged it. _We_ never acknowledged it.” He took a deep breath, and continued, “I’m acknowledging it now that there’s no need to pretend anymore, no need to pretend _anything_ anymore. I don’t regret saving a brother, Sasuke, no matter how he might curse me for it. It was the right thing to do, and I hope you will realize that in the future.”

Sasuke just stared, as if he couldn’t decide what expression to have.

Naruto nodded once. “I guess this is it. I will abide by your wishes and never appear before you again.”

The formal wording threw Sasuke off. “What –”

But Naruto was gone, the room empty except for himself. Sasuke tensed, fists clenching. _I didn’t even see him leave_.

Moments later Kakashi stuck his head back around the door, and raised an eyebrow when he saw Sasuke staring at the empty space before his bed. “You guys done? I couldn’t hear voices anymore – not that I could hear what you were saying, just that you were speaking,” he assured Sasuke when the brunet whipped his head around to glare. “Naruto left through the window, I see. Hope he didn’t break anything.”

_I didn’t even sense him move._

“He deserves it if he did,” Sasuke snapped, and then cursed vehemently – though mentally – when Sakura ran to his side and started crying, babbling about how glad he was _finally_ awake. He ignored the thoughtful, slightly wary gaze that Kakashi pinned on him and suffered silently through the hysterics. His mind was filled with Naruto and his words, and he was astounded to feel _guilt_. Why the hell was he feeling guilty? It wasn’t like the idiot didn’t deserve it.

Right?

He would track down Naruto tomorrow, he decided, injuries or no. He was going to clear things up with the moron once and for all, and make sure that the idiot didn’t stop him or blab on him to everyone.

It turned out, however, that he didn’t have to.

* * *

Chouji’s teammates had been there; for all that they fought as much as Team 7 did.

Neji and Lee’s remaining teammate had been there, and even their sensei, though probably Gai had been there for Lee as much as for anyone else.

Kiba’s teammates had been there, even the anti-social Shino, who they’d speculated once cared for nothing but his bugs.

He’d been the only one to wake up alone. He didn’t begrudge his friends – he was _glad_ that their friendships were close – but…

He’d woken up alone.

It was funny, really. He’d spent his _life_ being alone, but years of loneliness hadn’t hit so hard as waking up by himself in that room, and then seeing everyone else surrounded by their team, and then finding the rest of his _own_ team –

Okay, Kakashi had defended him, but he’d still been with Sasuke. Sakura – _Sakura_ – sure, he was healed more than Sasuke because of the Kyuubi, but he knew for a fact that he’d hurt Sasuke way less than Sasuke had hurt him back in the Valley of the End. Sasuke had started out trying to _kill_ him, for god’s sake.

He hadn’t expected gratitude from Sasuke, either, all things considered, but this had been a bit much.

A bit _too_ much.

The first thing he did was head to his apartment. And then, when he was done, he went to find Iruka-sensei, who yelled at him for a while and then heard him out and then _understood_. In that one moment, he loved Iruka-sensei more than he’d ever loved anyone, anything else in his young life.

“There’ll be hunters on your trail, so you’ll have to be more careful than ever before.”

“I know.”

“You’ll have to change your appearance, particularly those marks on your face.”

“I know.”

“You’ll have to stop eating so much ramen.”

“What!”

“You’ll never grow that way, and it’s as distinguishing a feature as the marks.”

“But – but –”

“ _Naruto_ …”

“I know, I know.”

“You’ll have to contact me often to let me know you’re alive, but use fake names and such.”

“I know.”

“I love you like younger brother, so don’t you dare die.”

“…I know. I love you too, Iruka-sensei.”

“Then go. There’s not much night left.”

“We’ll see each other again, Iruka-sensei. I swear.”

“I know. Go.”

Naruto left.

He ran faster than he’d ever run in his life, and his lungs and muscles burned, but he knew that no one could catch up to him at this speed – he’d once timed himself to see. It took a lot out of him, but he knew that he had at least a day’s head start – likely more – before anyone started wondering where he was, and that thought spurred him on further, gave him reason to just blank his mind and run.

So it was that when sunrise came, he greeted it standing on the highest branch of the highest tree he could find – just past the borders of the Fire Country, normally a two-day journey. Freedom was a bitter, ash taste in his mouth; it carried none of the relief he’d imagined as a child longing to escape, none of the joy he had dreamed of.

It simply hurt.

Clenching his fists against the loneliness, Naruto started to run again.

He would be running for a long time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story was my first real foray into the Naruto fandom. It clamped its jaws on my muses and wouldn’t let go, and I word-vomited out ten or so chapters without slowing down until it got to the battle scenes because I suck at battle scenes. Honestly, this was supposed to just be a quick self-indulgent piece to join those other Powerful Naruto Gets Revenge! stories out there, because those are fun, but somehow snowballed and gained a real plot and lots of characters I never intended to examine in detail.
> 
> In any case, like The Art of Seduction, this story is complete and I'll be uploading it onto AO3 chapter by chapter every few days when I have some free time from work.
> 
> And, as always, feel free to come shout at me on Twitter @clarypuff if you want to squeal about our favourite boys or have any ideas you're burning to share!
> 
>   
>  **Ashen Skies**   
>  _“When Naruto awoke, there was no one beside him."_   
> 


	2. Reunions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Five years ago, Naruto brought Sasuke back, but his only reward was anger and too much loneliness to bear -- and so he chose the other, previously unthinkable road.
> 
> He left.
> 
> Now it is Kitsune, strong and deadly, who returns to his old village with the Kazekage at his side. It is Kitsune who is determined to leave his past behind, but what happens when his past refuses to stay? It is the Kazekage who must be strong for his village and its allies, but what happens when it is Gaara who quietly breaks? When war erupts with Konoha at its heart, their resolve will be put to the test once and for all.

_Birds return to old nests._

\-- Japanese proverb

* * *

“This is the information on the target. We have half your required fee here, as you can verify for yourself, and the remainder will be deposited into your account upon confirmation of the target’s death. Will you accept?”

The cloaked man, face entirely shadowed by a heavy black hood, picked up the folder and opened it. Inside were photos and a few sheets of parchment. He glanced through them, and then closed the folder again. “This is but a child,” he said quietly, voice deep and resonating. “Isn’t sending me to deal with him overkill?”

The other man grimaced, his folds of wrinkles deepening. “Do not be fooled by his looks. He is dangerous. We have sent our own assassins, and they have failed. Three days ago, the two-month limit for reporting back passed and we have had to write off our latest dispatch as dead.”

“Therefore your missive to me dated three days ago.”

“Yes. Somehow the brat has acquired power and skill enough to defeat our most skilled shinobi. You, however, are likely to find this easy, and we are willing to pay you your normal fee, the same amount you would get if you were dealing with an S-Class nin. Surely you will not turn us down.”

The cloaked man considered this. “There are some issues I would like to clarify before I give you my answer.”

“As far as I can answer you, I will.”

“These assassins of yours – surely they are not the hunter-nins of Konoha? I have met some in my time, and their skill is… considerable.”

“No, no hunter-nins.”

“The ANBU, then?”

“Some of our assassins have abilities on par with the ANBU, yes.”

“Ah. But not the ANBU themselves…?”

A scowl twisted those folds into something menacing. “How is this relevant?”

“Oh, but it is. You see –” the assassin leaned forward, “– it seems to me that this project of yours is not sanctioned by the authorities of Konoha. In fact, judging by the amount of secrecy and complete lack of access to the official departments of Konoha, I would say that this project even goes _against_ the wishes of the village.”

The other man stood in a flurry of robes – not flustered, never flustered, only a cold condescending anger. “You overstep your boundaries, little cat – you should know that I am a member of the village council and well-respected in my own right.”

The cloaked man also stood, leisurely. He was physically short, but as he drew himself up, the impression he gave was one of untold heights. “”Yes, I know who you are – and it only adds to my suspicions about the legitimacy of this offer. If you are a part of the council, why have you not utilized the resources available to you?”

“This conversation is closed,” was the icy reply. “Do you or do you not accept the offer?”

They stood there, facing each other down. Then the assassin said, conversationally, “You called me ‘little cat’.”

The other man said nothing.

“My namesake may look like a cat, but the difference is vast. People may make the mistake once, but they do not make it twice.”

“Are you threatening me?”

He continued as if he had not been interrupted. “Do you know what the main difference is? The main difference is that, much more so than cats, foxes are smart. They are not house pets, but wild creatures that have to fight for survival.

“And they have sharp, sharp teeth.”

The man snarled. “I have had enough. Guards!”

The door slammed open, but the guards who stepped in were not dressed in the familiar nondescript colours that the man had expected. No, far from it – they wore very _specific_ colours.

Along with masks.

“And I,” said the assassin quietly as they came, “have the sharpest teeth of them all.”

The four ANBU moved silently, two to each of the men in the room. And on their heels came a larger-than-life presence, stalking into the room on loud heels and slamming the door behind her with a smug, furious finality.

“Danzo,” said the Godaime Hokage, pinning the old man with a glare, “you are hereby stripped of your position on the village council. You’ll be lucky if I don’t send you into exile.”

“You cannot do this!”

“Oh, I think I can.” Tsunade’s smile was not very nice at all. “Conspiring to assassinate a member of Konoha? That’s the final straw on a whole _list_ of straws, including ROOT, and believe me, ROOT is a very big straw indeed.”

“That _thing_ is not a member of Konoha,” Danzo hissed. “You are blind, Tsunade, blinded by your feminine soft-heartedness! If you had labelled that demon a missing-nin when he first vanished, we wouldn’t all be in danger now! He might be plotting to destroy us all at this very moment!”

Tsunade went wintry in a flash. “Naruto is no danger to us,” she snapped. “He is a shinobi out on a long-term assignment for this village. Watch your words, old man.”

Danzo snorted. “The whole village knows that for a lie.”

“I have the papers to prove it –”

“ _Forged_ papers!”

But Tsunade had had enough. “Take him away, put him under house arrest for now until I decide what to do with him,” she ordered the ANBU on either side of Danzo.

The masked shinobi reached out to take Danzo’s arm, but the old man shook them off. “I am a loyal member of this village,” he said coldly, “and I would thank you to treat me as such. I can walk on my own.”

At Tsunade’s small nod, the two ANBU let Danzo walk unhindered, but they stuck closely to his side as he made his way out of the room, not sparing a glance for anyone as he left. The remaining four in the room watched them leave in silence.

Only when the door closed behind them did Tsunade speak. “Kitsune-san,” she said, giving the assassin an acknowledging nod. “If you would follow me to my office, we can talk there.”

The assassin bowed. “It would be my honour, Hokage-sama.”

The ANBU followed the assassin almost as closely as their colleagues had followed Danzo, but they needn’t have worried about any treachery on his part. As they made their way through the streets of Konoha towards the Hokage’s tower and office, that black hood shifted constantly, as Kitsune turned his head to look around him, as if he had never been there before and was fascinated by every little thing.

When they arrived at the Hokage’s office, Tsunade spoke a few low words to the ANBU, who took up guarding positions on either side of the door. She then waved Kitsune into the room, following behind him and closing the door, leaving them alone.

“First of all, I would like to extend my thanks to you for informing us of Danzo’s plans,” Tsunade began as she went to her desk and sat down. Kitsune, waiting politely beside the chair on the opposite side of her table, only sat after she did. “You had no obligation to do so, and I recognize that.”

“Think nothing of it –”

“So I want to know why.”

There was a pause. “Why what?”

“Why you did it.” Tsunade stared hard into the shadows beneath that hood. “Your fee is no small sum, and you must know that Naruto is not your match. It would have been easy money. So why didn’t you just take it? Why did you tip us off?”

Kitsune shrugged lightly. “Maybe I wanted to stay on the good side of one of the most powerful shinobi in the world – you, with so many skilled nins at your disposal.”

“With your skill, no one would know you were ever involved.”

“Maybe I wanted the Hokage indebted to me.”

Tsunade’s eyes narrowed. “I am grateful, but not so grateful as to consider myself in your _debt_. The village comes before any individual member, and my duty is to the village. You would have known that.”

“Maybe I –”

“ _I want the truth_.”

She was practically radiating doom. Kitsune leaned back in his chair. Then he laughed, a sheepish laugh, and his hand rose awkwardly to the back of his head. “Eh… you’re scarier than before –”

That familiar laugh, that familiar gesture… Tsunade’s anger disappeared in a flash.

“– but you look exactly the same, baa-chan.”

“ _Naruto_?”

“Don’t say it so loud!” Kitsune – _Naruto_ – looked around nervously. “Your office is rather wide open, you know.”

“There are wards that prevent anyone not in the room overhearing,” Tsunade snapped. The urge to wrap her hands around his neck and squeeze warred with the urge to throw her arms around him and hug him close. She compromised by reaching out to smack him hard upside the head. “You little brat! Do you know how much trouble you caused me with your little stunt five years ago?”

She could hear the pout in his voice, even if his expression was still hidden. “That hurt, baa-chan. And anyway, it wasn’t an easy decision for me either!”

“Oh, you mean you actually thought about it?”

“Of course!”

A vein in Tsunade’s forehead bulged. “Then you didn’t think _enough_ , you idiot! And take off that damn hood!”

Naruto hesitated. “I don’t think that’s a good idea – people pop in and out of your windows all the time, you know.”

“Only Jiraiya and Kakashi do that, and both of them are out of the village at the moment. Don’t question your elders, brat!”

“Okay, okay! Sheesh.”

The hood was pushed back.

Tsunade’s jaw hung open.

Bright blue eyes and long blond hair, and a mischievous, heart-stopping grin. Naruto’s chin was less sharp, and he had those whiskers of his, and there were odd red highlights in the blond of his hair, but other than that – Tsunade could almost believe that Minato sat there across from her, young and striking and _alive_. She found herself blinking back tears.

Naruto’s grin faded to a look of concern. “Baa-chan?”

She shook her head and found her voice again, scrambling uncharacteristically for something to say to change the topic. “What did you do to your voice? You sound like you’re thirty.”

“Oh! I forgot.” Naruto grimaced and formed a few hand seals. When he spoke again, his voice was a deeper, stronger timbre than the child’s voice she remembered from years ago, but nowhere as low and growling as it had been. “It’s a jutsu I came up with to disguise my voice. I figured Kitsune wouldn’t get any respect if he was revealed to be a teenager, you know?”

Tsunade frowned. “If you can come up with something like that, then you can come up with something to disguise your features as well – a modification of that disgusting _henge_ you used on Jiraiya, maybe. Why the cloak? It has to be stifling.”

Naruto shrugged, and his smile this time was a little melancholy. “Didn’t want to expand the energy, I suppose. Besides, the cloak adds mystery and coolness.”

There was clearly some other reason, but Tsunade decided not to push, since Naruto obviously did not want to share. She stared at Naruto for a second or two more, and then gave in to her emotions. Standing, she went around her desk and without a word enfolded Naruto in a hug. She had missed the brat, and since she would never say it, this was the only way she could convey those feelings.

After a split second’s hesitation Naruto returned the hug, holding her just as tightly as she was holding him. He closed his eyes, and just held onto her. Tsunade had _believed_ in him. She had covered for him, lied for him to the village. She still loved him like the little brother he knew she’d come to see him as. And that put her high on his list of precious people.

Finally, Tsunade released him, and he took his cue from her. Going back to her seat, she said gruffly, “You’ve grown taller, but you’re still short.”

He made a face. “Don’t rub it in.”

She sighed. “As much as I’d like to continue catching up with you, I think there’s a reason why you came back to Konoha. You could have refused Danzo without coming here. Have you finally decided to come out of hiding?”

Naruto grinned. “Well, for one, I wanted to make sure Danzo was caught. He’s been a pain in my side the past few years, sending all those creepy blank-faced assassins after me. Is that what ROOT is? You mentioned it earlier.”

“Yes, ROOT is Danzo’s pet project – the training of a group of emotionless, puppet-like assassins.” Tsunade scowled. “They might be good fighters, but everything about ROOT is inhuman – the training process, the philosophy behind it, the end products… I’ve put an end to it, but I couldn’t be sure that it won’t be revived again unless I get at Danzo himself. You did good, brat.”

“Thanks.” Naruto grimaced. “I knew Danzo was a fanatic, but that is downright weird.”

“Yes, it is. You still haven’t answered my question, you know.”

“Your question? Oh, yeah. Actually I really did come back just for Danzo,” Naruto said sheepishly. “I figured that if you confronted me I’d reveal myself to you, and maybe drop by Iruka-sensei’s house for a while, but I wasn’t planning to stay.”

Tsunade looked half-troubled, half-annoyed. “This can’t go on, Naruto. Five years is a damn long time even for a long-term undercover mission, and it’s a ridiculous cover for someone who technically is still a genin. So far all I’ve gotten is a whole shitload of angry and suspicious letters, but I’m not optimistic enough to think that things will be that easy forever.”

“Baa-chan, I…” Naruto looked away, eyes lost. “I love Konoha. I always have, and I still do. But I’m not happy here, baa-chan. I’ve never really been happy here, and now that I’ve found my place in the world outside… please don’t make me stay.”

“Being an assassin means being in constant danger, and having no allegiance, no village or country to call home. That isn’t having a place in the world, Naruto. It’s _not_ having a place in the world.”

Naruto smiled. “But that’s not what I’m referring to, baa-chan. I do have somewhere that I feel like I belong… I’m planning to either give up or tone down on the assassin thing, sometime soon. Maybe take the occasional job to hunt down some S-class nin that no one can, sort of thing.”

Tsunade eyed him. “You’re found someone.” It was not a question.

Naruto just grinned at her, bright and happy.

Sighing, the Hokage leaned back in her chair, massaging her temples. “Fine, I won’t pry. But Naruto, I meant it when I said that this state of affairs can’t go on. I can’t just keep you on this so-called mission indefinitely. If I declare you a missing-nin, I’ll be obliged to send hunter-nins after you. If I label you as an exile from Konoha, but not a traitor, it still gives everyone who has a grudge free rein to hunt you down, and I can’t extend any protection to you.”

“I know, I know. And I love Konoha still – I don’t want to lose my status as a citizen of Konoha, I just don’t want to live here.” Naruto sat back as well, biting his lip in thought. “Is there any way that it’s possible to do that?”

Tsunade ran through a list in her mind. It was a very _short_ list. “There are a few positions which may allow you to remain a Konoha citizen in name, but keep you outside the village almost permanently,” she said at last. “And to be honest, very few people want jobs like that – so if I were to give you one of those positions, I don’t think there would be a problem.”

Naruto sat up straight in his chair, blue eyes eager. “Really? Oh man, that’d be brilliant! If I’d known you wouldn’t try to keep me here, I wouldn’t have been afraid to come back! You’re a genius, Tsunda-baa-chan –”

She held up a hand to stop his babble, scowling fearsomely, but inwardly smiling at that too-young reaction. “That’s the reason you stayed away for five years?”

“Yeah, I know it’s stupid, I’m sorry.” Naruto’s grin faded into a wry smile. “But I really didn’t want to have to fight you and maybe other shinobi who I know, just to get out of Konoha again.”

Tsunade reached over and smacked him. “Idiot,” she said with affectionate exasperation.

“Yeah, yeah.” Naruto’s grin returned. “Guilty as charged. So what’s the plan, baa-chan? I can’t wait! What am I going to be?” He was practically bouncing in his seat.

“Not so fast, you brat. There’s a catch.”

“Aw, man.”

“Nothing that you can’t handle, don’t worry. Or rather, nothing that Kitsune can’t handle.” She grinned. “The thing is, all the positions require someone of at _least_ jounin rank. You’d need a whole other impressive list of feats to recommend you, as well, but I think your past record as Kitsune is more than enough to prove your reputation.”

“But I’m way above jounin rank already,” Naruto said blankly.

Tsunade resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “Not _officially_. Officially you’re still a genin, remember?”

“Oh… yeah.” Naruto looked thoughtful, an odd expression that she wasn’t used to seeing on that face. “Damn.”

Tsunade rifled through her papers, searching. “The jounin exam’s in a week,” she said absently. “You’re lucky that it’s being held in Konoha this year, as the hosting Hokage I can speed you through paperwork. One week is short notice for most shinobi, but you’ll be fine. Once you gain jounin rank we can reveal who you are, and use your new rank and your old reputation as Kitsune to install you in one of those positions I mentioned. You can have your pick once you pass. Oh, and I think it’s best you hide who you are for now, it’ll make things go more smoothly. Aha!”

She held up a piece of paper triumphantly, and passed it over to Naruto. “There you go. Fill out the form, hand it to the Exam Registration Office that’s been set up for this exam, and you’re set.”

Naruto grabbed a pen from the table and started scribbling. “I assume I put ‘independent’ for ‘origins’, right?”

“Yes, you’re going as Kitsune, aren’t you? People will start wondering if you say that you’re from Konoha.” She grimaced when she saw his handwriting. “Is that supposed to be readable?”

He stuck his tongue out at her.

“The famous fox assassin with a chicken scrawl for handwriting. If only your enemies could see this now.”

Naruto signed off with a flourish, and made a face as he passed the form back to her. “My enemies can’t see anything now, thankfully. They’re all dead. Well, at least the ones that crossed my path, anyway.”

That sobered Tsunade. She looked at Naruto with a heavy weight in her heart – he was still Naruto, yes, but he was also the feared assassin Kitsune, rumoured to be undefeated as yet… and who had killed. Who had killed many, many people.

The Naruto in front of her may look and act like the Naruto she knew, but in every other way, he might as well be a complete stranger.

He noticed her sudden pensive mood, and seemed to guess the turn her thoughts had taken. His smile was sad. “I’m still me, baa-chan,” he said quietly. “I’m just… harder, and stronger, and I’ve fully come to terms with myself and the world. That’s not all bad.”

“No,” she said, equally subdued. “But it’s not all good, either.”

He shrugged. “Nothing in this world is ever clear-cut, or easy, and a lot of it has to do with blood.”

That sounded too much like her own thoughts on a dark day. She shook her head. “You’ll have to tell me what happened, in these five years. How you managed to grow so strong so fast, for one.”

Naruto nodded, after some hesitation. “As much as I can,” he said, and Tsunade knew that there would be large chunks left out – but then again, she might not want to know. “But after the exams.”

“After –?”

“I have things to do, things to tie up before the exam starts,” Naruto explained. “As it is, travelling is already going to take me two days per trip, at a decent pace. I’ll be back within the week, don’t worry.”

Tsunade nodded, unhappy, but it wasn’t as if she had a choice. Her curiosity would have to wait longer. “Very well, then. Oh, wait,” she added, remembering, as Naruto stood and prepared to pull his hood back on. “There’s something you should know.”

He waited.

“The jounin exam’s held every two years. In the time you’ve been missing, there have been two.”

Naruto waited, exaggeratedly patient.

Tsunade sighed. She’d hope that she wouldn’t need to say it out loud. “A large group of the Rookie Nine will be taking part in this year’s jounin exam, as well, having passed the chuunin exam just before the last jounin one.”

The patience changed to something inscrutable. “I guessed as much,” he said. “I know Shikamaru passed the last time, but Neji, Lee and – and Sasuke failed. So I figured they’d be taking it again, and some others would probably be joining them.”

“Do you want to know who?”

He shook his head vehemently. Then he paused. And then, finally, he nodded with something akin to resignation.

“Everyone in the nine,” Tsunade said simply, “and Tenten as well, joining her teammates. All except Ino, who is still recovering from her last mission.”

Naruto winced. Thoughts chased themselves over his face, before he settled on one: “Has anything happened with Sasuke?”

Tsunade’s eyes narrowed. “No, nothing. Why? Is there any reason to suspect something happening with Sasuke?”

“Um…”

“That’s why you left, isn’t it? It had something to do with Uchiha.” Tsunade pinned Naruto with a hard gaze. “If there’s something about Sasuke that concerns the village, I think you should tell me.”

“No, it’s just… it’s personal,” Naruto said at last, but it was unconvincing. “You’ve been keeping tabs on him, right? Ever since – ever since that time? I know you’ve got him under watch.”

Tsunade snorted. “You’ve been keeping tabs on _Konoha_ yourself, haven’t you? You seem to know much about what’s going on.” Secretly she was pleased – it seemed that Konoha, and Naruto’s former friends, still featured largely in his thoughts. “But yes – I’ve been watching Uchiha. I’d be a fool not to, after what he tried, but he’s been on his best behaviour.”

Naruto’s grin was sudden and very, very wide. He raised an eyebrow.

She scowled. “Alright, fine, his best behaviour includes snapping at everyone and generally being his annoying bratty self, but he hasn’t tried to betray the village or kill anyone else.”

“I see.” Naruto nodded. “I knew as much, but it’s good to have it confirmed by you personally.”

“Naruto…” Her tone was threatening.

“I have to go. I really do have lots to do, stuff to buy, people to contact…” Naruto gave her a cheeky grin. “See you in a bit, baa-chan!”

“Wait –”

But he was already gone, out of the window and across the rooftops in a flash. Tsunade sighed heavily, but couldn’t help her eyes widening a little with amazement. He was _fast_.

The door opened. “Hokage-sama? Is everything alright?”

She straightened, and nodded at the ANBU guard. “Yes, everything’s fine.”

The guard bowed, and closed the door again, leaving Tsunade alone with her work. She glared balefully at the pile, and then decided that after Naruto’s visit, she was in no mood to deal with it. A nap sounded good.

Smiling, she closed her eyes.

* * *

As Tsunade slept, halfway across the village, Iruka had with surprising reflexes whipped out a kunai, aiming it threateningly at the cloaked man who had suddenly appeared in his living room. “Who are you?” he demanded, brown eyes narrowing.

Naruto felt like grinning and throwing himself at Iruka-sensei in a hug, but at the same time he felt like cowering and apologizing profusely and spilling his secrets. It was… an interesting combination of emotions. He pushed back his hood, and the urge to grin won out full-force as Iruka’s jaw dropped, much like Tsunade’s had earlier.

“ _Naruto_?”

“Yep. It’s me, Iruka-sensei – _ack_!”

Iruka could be really fast, too. Naruto found himself crushed in a bear hug, and he returned it enthusiastically. God, it was great to see Iruka-sensei again. He heard Iruka sniffle, and had to fight back a few tears himself.

Finally Iruka calmed down enough to draw back. His smile was stretched wider than the scar across his nose, and he ruffled Naruto’s hair fondly. “You’ve really grown, Naruto,” he said warmly.

“Still not enough, but I’ll take what I can get,” Naruto replied, smiling back.

“Your unhealthy eating habits probably not helping you, I’ll bet.” Iruka beamed at him, words notwithstanding. “It’s wonderful to see you again, Naruto. Come, sit, I’ll get us some tea –”

“No, I can’t stay long.” Naruto reached out to give Iruka another impulsive hug, at the sight of his crestfallen expression. “I’m sorry, Iruka-sensei, but I’m on a tight schedule. I just wanted to see you in person again after so long, that’s all.”

“Can’t you stay even to talk a little while?” Iruka said, disappointment clear in his voice.

Naruto shook his head. “Not now. But tell you what – I’ll come back once the exam’s done, and we can talk through the night. Okay?”

He watched as Iruka worked it out, and shock came over his face. “The _jounin_ exam? Naruto, are you out of your mind? You’ll get killed!”

Naruto had to laugh, but there was darkness it in. “I know what I’m doing, Iruka-sensei. I’ve spoken to Tsunade-baa-chan already, and she approves. It’s the best way forward. I’ll explain it to you in a few weeks, when the exam’s done, I _swear_.”

Iruka nodded reluctantly. “I’m not happy with this, but I’ve waited five years to talk to you, I guess I can wait a little longer.” He looked accusingly at Naruto. “Your letter-writing skills are atrocious – almost as bad as your actual writing. Have I taught you nothing?”

“Nothing that stuck, anyway,” Naruto said cheekily, and laughingly ducked Iruka’s swat. “Sorry, sorry. At least I wrote!”

“That’s true,” Iruka conceded. He smiled. “And I’m grateful for every letter, and that you look so well, now.”

Naruto grinned at him, full of love for this man who had taken him under his wing without reservation. “I’m glad to see you well, too.”

They shared a moment of understanding. Then Naruto looked out of the window, and seeing the sun’s position, said regretfully, “I really have to go.”

Iruka sighed. “Very well. If you must.”

“Iruka-sensei… I know you understand this, but – don’t tell _anyone_ that I’m back, or taking part in the exams, okay? Only Tsunade-baa-chan knows.”

Iruka drew himself up and gave Naruto the formidable Teacher’s Glare that always made his students want to pee in their pants. “Who do you take me for, Naruto?” he demanded. “Have I not kept your secret for –”

“Okay, okay!” Naruto cringed and held up his hands in surrender. “I’m sorry!”

“You had better be.” Iruka huffed, and relaxed. He held out his arms, and Naruto gladly hugged him again. “I’ll see you in a few weeks, then?”

“I promise,” Naruto said firmly. He stepped back, and then went to the window, drawing his hood up again. He looked back at Iruka, standing forlornly in the middle of the room. “Thanks, Iruka-sensei. I’ve missed you, you know.”

Iruka smiled. “I know. I’ve missed you too, Naruto.”

He formed the hand seals that activated his voice-disguising jutsu. Then, with a final look at Iruka, Naruto leapt out of the window and was gone.

* * *

“You are going to _what?_ ”

“Eh heh heh. Um. Well. There’s no other way, I swear!”

“Akatsuki is on the move. Orochimaru is up to something. And you want to waste your time in an exam you could probably pass with your eyes closed.”

“At least it won’t take me long, right?”

“…I will come with you.”

“What? No! Look, if it’s pointless for me, it’s _completely_ , insanely pointless for _you_! You don’t have to come just because of me –”

“I have decided. After all, I have also, technically, not passed any exam higher than genin.”

“But you’re the –!”

“ _Naruto_.”

“…Oh, fine. Be that way. It’s not like I ever could change your mind, anyway.”

“I see you understand your limits.”

“Just don’t complain if you’re bored out of your mind.”

“I would thank you not to put me on your level.”

“Hey! What’s that supposed to mean?”

* * *

Three days after Naruto’s visit, Tsunade was rudely woken by Shizune, who had a scroll, sent by express courier pigeon. The Hokage unrolled it, yawning. She froze mid-yawn as she read.

Her yell resounded through the entire tower.

“ _What do you mean the Kazekage is taking the_ _jounin exam_?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for such lovely comments last chapter! :3 I do agree with all of you that I often feel Konoha doesn't deserve Naruto, but I believe that Naruto deserves to have what he wants and since he still loves Konoha and his friends, that's what he'll get. In any case, I'm so glad to see that there are still some NaruGaa fans out there being active. Don't worry, our beloved Gaara is going to appear in the next chapter along with some interaction between our favourite boys!
> 
> Also, Danzo makes a great villain and normally I would fall back on him for Lead Antagonist but I couldn't be bothered for this fic, because this fic is just me wanting to mend relationships between everyone intead of having An Actual Plot. So... if you're looking for intrigue and action and twisty plots THIS IS NOT THE RIGHT STORY. Sorry?
> 
> As always, feel free to come shout at me on Twitter @clarypuff although currently it's pretty much entirely The Untamed/MDZS retweets lol.
> 
>   
>  **Ashen Skies**   
>  _“Nothing in this world is ever clear-cut, or easy, and a lot of it has to do with blood."_   
> 


	3. The First Exam

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Five years ago, Naruto brought Sasuke back, but his only reward was anger and too much loneliness to bear -- and so he chose the other, previously unthinkable road.
> 
> He left.
> 
> Now it is Kitsune, strong and deadly, who returns to his old village with the Kazekage at his side. It is Kitsune who is determined to leave his past behind, but what happens when his past refuses to stay? It is the Kazekage who must be strong for his village and its allies, but what happens when it is Gaara who quietly breaks? When war erupts with Konoha at its heart, their resolve will be put to the test once and for all.

_We hate most in others what we dislike to see in ourselves._

\-- Anonymous

* * *

“Have you heard? About Kitsune –”

“It’s official, we passed by the Suna contingent on our way –”

“I don’t know about you, but I think I’m going to withdraw.”

“The Konoha group isn’t to be taken lightly either –”

“We have to fight _both_ Kitsune and the Kazekage?”

“I can’t believe they’re not jounin already.”

“Don’t forget the Konoha shinobi –”

“Man, what bad luck, of all the exams –”

“I don’t believe this.”

“There’s no way we can compete with them!”

Hearing that last plaintive cry echoing into the crisp morning air, Neji sneered slightly. “Weaklings,” he said contemptuously. “They have lost even before we have even started.”

“Now, now, Neji!” Lee struck a pose, his grin blinding as always. “The fires of determination burn best when faced with adverse situations! Once the exam is underway, our good fellow competitors will definitely find their fighting spirit! We must not underestimate our opponents!”

More than one pair of eyes rolled heavenwards in the little group of chuunins, standing together but separate from the rest of the shinobi gathered in the field where all the participants in the jounin exam had been told to meet. Other shinobi cast them glances from time to time – the Konoha Rookie Nine had grown in strength and reputation, and even those from other villages had heard of them, and their achievements. Even if they were ‘rookie’ no longer, nor were they _nine_ , the name had stuck.

Furthermore, with them was the one other team that they were often found together with – a team that included two of the most famous rising names in the shinobi world. All together, the seven of the Rookie Nine that were present and the addition of the team of three made for a formidable sight.

There were the Hyuuga cousins, with their unnerving eyes. There was the scowling Uchiha, who the shinobi world still did not know what to make of, especially with what he did five years back. There was the protégé of the current Hokage, her pink hair bright. There was the dog-man, and the fat man, and the bug man, and the weapons specialist. There was the green monstrosity, his looks hiding fighting skill beyond imagination. The heir to the mind-possession technique wasn’t there, but her teammate, the man who was rumoured to be the Hokage’s consultant for all key strategic plans, was with the group, yawning. He was a supervisor, and technically not supposed to be there, but it seemed as if he didn’t care, and no one was going to tell him to leave.

Their solidarity was surprising in a bunch of shinobi who had lived long enough to hone their skills to jounin level, and it made the other jounins-to-be worried. What if they banded together in the exam itself? It would be an unfair advantage. Others were unconcerned: in their view, this camaraderie would never survive the harsh exam conditions.

The nine chuunins – and one jounin – were aware of what the other shinobi thought, but ignored it. They were used to being judged by others. Instead, they focused on their main concern: the other two much-talked-about participants in the exam.

“The Kazekage’s presence is confirmed,” Shikamaru put in, half-awake. It was too damn early; he wished he was back in bed, but Tsunade had insisted on him being one of the supervisors. “I asked the Hokage.”

“That’s what she told me, too, when I asked,” Sakura said. She looked worried. “Tsunade-sensei’s worried, she didn’t tell me why, but I think it’s about the security arrangements.”

“It’d look bad if we managed to get the Kazekage killed,” Kiba agreed, grinning.

“Not that anyone will be able to,” Shino murmured. “Or try to.”

Those that had witnessed the Kazekage’s power were reminded of the times they had seen him exercise that power. They nodded fervently, with the exception of Lee.

“Gaara-san is our ally,” Lee protested. “He helped us when we were – he helped us years ago,” he amended, giving Sasuke a discreet glance, tactfully avoiding mention of the Sasuke-retrieval mission. “And Suna is Konoha’s ally, too. We should not speak badly of him!”

“What I don’t understand,” Hinata said meekly, breaking the awkward silence that followed Lee’s words, “is why the Kazekage would need to take the jounin exam.”

“Technically he hasn’t even passed the chuunin one,” Tenten pointed out. “It’s weird for a Kage to be a genin. Maybe he figured it was time he got an official qualification?”

Chouji swallowed a mouthful of meat bun – his mother had insisted that it was a more nutritious breakfast than crisps, and told him that he needed his energy for the exam. “Why did he have to choose _this_ exam? I really don’t want to fight him.”

A snort made all eyes look towards Sasuke. He was standing a little apart from them, as per normal. They tried their best to include him, but even if he didn’t reject them outright, he was always cold.

Sakura would never give up trying, though. She had already lost one teammate, she wasn’t about to let the other go. She smiled at Sasuke. “Is there something you want to say, Sasuke-kun?”

He eyed them, and then shrugged. “Not really,” he said, a tiny sneer curling his lip. “Only that you’re wasting your time worrying about the Kazekage. He’s insane, who knows what goes through his head?”

“We’re going to go up against someone with such strength, Sasuke-kun,” Hinata said timidly. She was getting better at speaking up. “I think that’s enough of a cause to worry.”

“He’s the Kazekage. No matter how powerful he is, he has responsibilities, an image to uphold. He’s not going to be able to go berserk or anything.” Sasuke looked around the circle. “You’re probably right that he’s strong, but I don’t think you have to worry about getting really hurt by his hand.”

“Sasuke’s right,” Shikamaru said, looking thoughtfully at the scowling man. “As the Kazekage Gaara-san has to show restraint.”

“So… we only have to worry about each other, then?” was Kiba’s cheerful contribution. “Cool!”

Neji rolled his eyes. “Idiot,” he said shortly.

Kiba bared his teeth. “Watch it, Neji,” he snapped. Akamaru, huge now, barked.

Blank eyes glared back. “Have you not been paying attention? Besides the Kazekage, there is also Kitsune to worry about. He’s an assassin, one of the best, and he’s not from any village – which means he’d going to have no qualm about killing anything and anyone in his way.”

“Oh… yeah. Damn.”

Sakura laughed. “I can’t believe you forgot, Kiba-kun!”

Kiba opened his mouth to retort, when there was a sudden commotion. Heads turned to the direction of Konoha; the field they were in lay just outside the main village, and those who were participating would come from that direction, anyone not living in Konoha having taken temporary residence in one of the inns. The group of chuunins turned as one to look.

Gaara’s shaggy fall of hair was a rich red in the early morning sunlight. He had grown, and become less scrawny, in the past few years – but he was still of medium height, not too short, but not tall either. What he hadn’t gained physically, though, he more than made up for in his bearing – he held himself with a quiet, deadly confidence, his movements graceful and sure, eyes steady, chin up. He wasn’t wearing the Kazekage robes and hat, but rather a black-and-red ensemble that looked vaguely like what he’d worn years ago – complete with gourd, strapped to his back. He was nothing like the half-mad child that most of them remembered.

Next to him walked the other infamous personality that the examinees had been discussing. Kitsune was wearing a black cloak that rippled as he walked; he was just that little bit taller than the Kazekage at his side. He held himself equally confidently, but was a touch less reserved than the Kazekage was. The heavy hood had been pushed back, revealing longish spiky hair, blond with red highlights, but his face was obscured by a white mask – a completely blank white mask, with not a single mark in sight, not even holes for the eyes, let alone the nose and mouth. Everyone looking wondered for a moment how he could see, or breathe.

They were an intimidating pair, the two of them. Those watching could see at once that they knew each other – being chuunins, the examinees were observant enough to notice the ease with which they matched each other’s movements, like it was something natural they didn’t need to think about. It did not bode well; the idea of the combined strength of the Kazekage and Kitsune was too daunting to imagine.

Everyone present watched, interested, as Gaara’s gaze, sweeping over the crowd, stopped on the what was left of the Rookie Nine, Plus Three. He turned his face slightly towards Kitsune, green eyes never leaving the group of Konoha nins. The blank mask tilted slightly downwards, as if Kitsune was looking at Gaara. Then, seemingly without any further communication, their course altered towards the group of shinobi, who shifted into – not battle stances, but perhaps pre-battle-stances stances.

The pair came to a stop a few steps away from the circle, which had opened up so that they could all see one another. The Kazekage looked at them all evenly, and then to everyone’s complete amazement, gave them the tiniest of smiles. “Konoha shinobi,” he said. “It is good to see you well.”

Lee recovered first. “Gaara-san!” he exclaimed, giving the pair a blinding grin. “It’s good to see you again too! It’s wonderful how you still strive for excellence, one step at a time, even after you have reached the top! The fire of your determination is worth learning from!”

Even faced with that grin and the attack of exclamation marks, Gaara managed to remain unruffled. “Thank you, Lee-san. I congratulate you once again on your full recovery.” He indicated the man next to him with a tilt of his head. “May I introduce you – all of you – to Kitsune? Kitsune, this is the well known Rookie Nine, and the team formerly under Guy-san.”

Kitsune spoke; his voice was deep, old, and didn’t match his youthful hairstyle (punk-ish, if they were to be honest) at all. “It’s good to be able to put faces to the names. I only see ten of you here, however. I have heard that one member is ill, which accounts for the eleventh, but where is the twelfth? I have been given to… understand, that he has left you for good.”

At that, varying shades of animosity darkened some faces, while others went blank, Sasuke’s included. Sakura belonged to the first group; her eyes narrowed, but she spoke politely. “I’m afraid you misunderstand, then, Kitsune-san. Naruto is still a part of the Rookie Nine. He has simply been away on an extended mission for quite a while. Surely you _understand_ the difficulties of a shinobi’s life?”

Kitsune tilted a head, and the angle was somehow mocking. “Ah, I’m sorry. I thought he was a genin. Perhaps Konoha runs differently from the other villages? I thought the practice was that genins did not take extended missions, especially not ones that last so long.”

A muscle worked in Sakura’s jaw, but she kept her smile. “Naruto _is_ a genin,” she said, still pleasant. “But he has… abilities that I have no doubt caused Hokage-sama to decide to give him his mission.”

She stared at where the eyes should be on the white mask, not letting the lack of anything to stare at discourage her, refusing to back down. Behind her, she could feel Kiba’s glare joining hers. They had heard all there was to be said about Naruto and his absence, and they were used to defending him. Sakura and Kiba were the most vocal, but Hinata had gotten pretty upset before, and she knew that Neji had fought (and soundly thrashed) a couple of shinobi once because of what they had said about Naruto.

Gaara touched Kitsune’s hand lightly. It was a small gesture, the pressure almost nonexistent, but the tension in Kitsune’s body dissipated slightly. He gave Sakura a small, ironic bow. “I stand corrected,” he said. “I look forward to competing with you all.”

The Kazekage gave them an acknowledging nod, and then, again as one, the two of them turned and moved off. They found an empty patch of field, away from everyone else, and stood there, faces close, apparently talking softly.

Kiba spoke for all of them when he said, “What the hell was that?” It was crudely put, but apt, and the sentiment behind it was shared by all.

Why was Kitsune so interested in them and Naruto, and what was he up to?

* * *

“How dare she?” Naruto’s whisper hissed through his teeth. “How dare she act all noble and concerned, when she was the one –!”

Gaara’s hand was warm and comforting, fingers wrapped gently around Naruto’s wrist. “Do not let your conflicting emotions unbalance you,” he said softly. “You know better than that.”

“But she –”

“People change, Naruto. People speak words that they do not truly believe, in the heat of the moment. Is it so hard to believe that the words she spoke in the past were not her true thoughts, or that she has revised her opinions?”

“I don’t trust this, Gaara.”

“You are happy that she defended you, and you hate that you are happy.” The redhead’s gaze was unflinching; somehow, he always knew exactly where to look to lock gazes with Naruto, even through the mask. “But you have always loved Konoha, and longed for your old friendships. You must have known you would feel this way.”

That made Naruto laugh, but not happily. “I never really thought about it. I don’t _want_ to be happy about this, Gaara. I don’t want to still be attached to her – to them.” They both knew he was talking about his old team, not his old friends from the other teams.

Gaara’s smile was wry. “Even you must know that that is a lie.”

Naruto sighed, and hung his head. “Can’t you just let me bask in denial for a little longer?”

“No. It is not good for you.”

He had to laugh. God, Gaara was so – perfect. He was always there, and always said what Naruto needed him to say. He knew it wasn’t healthy to rely so much on having Gaara always there to keep him on his path, to make him smile, but Naruto couldn’t help himself. He couldn’t imagine _not_ having Gaara there, anymore.

Just as he couldn’t imagine ever telling Gaara that he loved him.

The redhead was still pretty introverted, still a baby in the area of emotion, especially emotions like love, and liking. If there was the slightest risk that telling Gaara meant scaring him off, ruining their friendship, then Naruto didn’t dare take that risk. He was Gaara’s most important friend, and he knew that Gaara held him in high regard, and would almost anything for him – and that was enough, for Naruto.

For now.

“Sasuke looks the same, just older,” he said, changing topics. “I don’t know what I expected – a sign saying ‘I am a traitor, please shoot me’? I don’t know. Something. Maybe he’s changed, maybe he’s seen the error of his ways. Do you think it’s possible?”

Gaara’s green eyes had gone dark. Naruto wanted to kick himself – he should have known better than to talk about Sasuke. Gaara had always harboured intense dislike for the Uchiha. “It might be possible,” he said stiffly.

“Gaara… I’m sorry.” Naruto hesitated, and then decided to damn the risk this once, and turned his wrist in Gaara’s grip. The grip loosened, and Naruto was able to catch that hand in his own, intertwining their fingers. “I won’t talk about Sasuke.”

To his relief, and happiness, Gaara didn’t pull away, but actually tightened his grip. “No,” Gaara said, letting out a tiny sigh. “I am being unreasonable. The Uchiha is one of the three problems that we have agreed to watch out for while in Konoha; we will have to speak of him sometime. I will try to reign in my dislike.”

“You shouldn’t have to hide your emotions,” Naruto protested, meaning it. It was rare that Gaara showed his emotions outwardly, and Naruto treasured each time it happened – he wanted to see more expressions on that normally solemn face. “I don’t care that you hate Sasuke, I don’t feel all that friendly towards him myself, you know. He’s an asshole with ugly hair.”

Gaara’s lips twitched in a smile. Relieved, delighted, Naruto grinned back, and he knew that even with the mask Gaara could sense the grin. His mask was made of a material that allowed him to see out from inside but was opaque on the outside, but somehow Gaara never had problems knowing what his expression was.

Shikamaru chose that moment to break away from his friends, and climb aboard a tree stump. He surveyed the waiting shinobi who turned to look at him, and sighed. It was a very _expressive_ sigh, and managed to convey complete boredom and the idea that there were much better things to do with one’s morning, namely, sleeping late and not having to get up at the crack of dawn. Naruto snickered. Shikamaru was still the same.

“Hey all.” Shikamaru sounded bored and like he was reading off a script. “I’m Shikamaru, one of your supervisors, and I’m supposed to brief you on the first part of the exam, it’s supposed to be a written test, I don’t know how they expect people’s brains to work so early in the morning, so –”

Naruto and Gaara shifted stances, instinctively knowing what was coming.

“– we’re going to be kind and help you wake up properly.”

Gai and Kakashi appeared in puffs of smoke at the other end of the field. Gai was grinning brilliantly, his teeth blinding. Kakashi’s one visible eye was lazy. They both waved.

“See you guys later,” Shikamaru drawled.

Naruto and Gaara only caught the first half of his sentence. They were already on Kakashi’s tail, as Gai and Kakashi disappeared in a flash of speed, splitting up in two directions. A few of the other examinees were right behind them, but not many – some had chosen to follow Gai, and some had allowed that split second of confusion to hold them back. And in the shinobi world, a split second was sometimes all you had.

Sakura and Sasuke were part of the group following Kakashi – clearly choosing, like Naruto, to tail their old sensei, whose movements they were more familiar with. Naruto figured it was the same reason why Neji, Lee and Tenten were presumably in the other group following Gai.

It took only five minutes of keeping up with Kakashi before Naruto began to get bored. He could tell Kakashi was keeping back that last bit of skill that would make him almost untraceable, and figured that this part of the test was only meant to weed out the very weakest, which was why Kakashi didn’t go all out. Plus, Kakashi was going in random directions, in crazy circles around the village, in order to lose some and give the ones who were lost a chance to find him again.

Naruto could tell Gaara was beginning to grow bored, too, so he aligned his movements with the redhead’s, and then, when they were perfectly in sync, formed a few seals and reached out to take Gaara’s hand .The jutsu came to life the moment their skin touched.

**_Want to ditch this stupid chase?_ **

Gaara didn’t bother looking at him. **_We need to know where he’s going. The final destination is likely to be our written test venue._**

**_I know that! I meant, why don’t we let our clones take over and grab some breakfast? This little bit of running’s made me hungry._ **

**_You’re always hungry._ **Gaara’s mental voice was amused. **_But now that I am more awake, I admit that I might be able to eat something._**

**_Good, you’re too thin. You need to eat more. Shall we?_ **

Gaara’s answer was to drop back behind the other shinobi following them – since they were keeping up with Kakashi easily, unlike the others who had to make an effort, Naruto and Gaara were the first ones behind the Copy Nin. Naruto followed Gaara, grinning behind his mask as Sasuke gave them a suspicious glance as he and Sakura leapt past.

When they were at the end of the line of leaping shinobi (it was a really funny image, come to think of it, like little fleas jumping to catch up with their dog) the two of them formed the requisite hand seals. Their kagebunshins poofed into existence and immediately darted forward, aiming for the head of the line once again.

Naruto jumped lightly off the roof that they found themselves on, Gaara landing next to him. He grinned at his stoic partner. “I know this great ramen place –” he began.

“No.”

“Aww, Gaara…”

“Not for breakfast.”

Naruto pouted, and then remembered that Gaara couldn’t see it. He sighed. “Fine,” he said grumpily. “What then?”

Gaara considered this. “Somewhere you can remove your mask and eat normally,” he said finally. “It is not healthy to have to gulp down so much food in one go.”

“Oh.” Naruto blinked, and warm fuzzy feelings ran through him. Gaara was concerned about him! “Okay then,” he said, unable to keep the big grin from showing in his voice. He looked around, getting his bearings. “There’s this little teahouse that should be nearby, Chouji told me about it before.”

“The big one?” Gaara said after a moment’s recollection.

“Yeah!” Naruto loved how Gaara worked at remembering the names and stories of his Konoha friends. “That’s the one.”

They walked in companionable silence as the village awoke all around them, sleepy greetings coming from the houses on either side, windows opening, the sounds of cooking filtering out. Naruto suddenly missed the village with a ferocious ache.

Gaara knew him too well. He shifted so that he was pressed closer to Naruto, and Naruto could feel his warmth. He relaxed.

The teahouse, when they finally found it (“See, I told you I’m not lost!”) was just opening. The owner was surprised when this odd pair showed up at his door, but welcomed them in. The Kazekage was known only in name and reputation, in Konoha; few ordinary citizens knew what he looked like.

After choosing a seat in the corner, where no one would be able to see Naruto’s face unless they were standing right next to the booth, they ordered tea and some buns. Naruto didn’t take the mask off until the food arrived, after which he wolfed down the food with enthusiasm. He was on his third bun when he realized that Gaara was only halfway through his first, idly tearing tiny bits off and nibbling at them.

“You said you were hungry!” he accused, swallowing.

“I said that I might be able to eat something,” Gaara corrected mildly. “I am eating something.”

Naruto eyed the still pretty whole bun in Gaara’s hands. “That’s not _something_ , that’s hardly _anything_.”

Gaara tore off another small piece and popped it into his mouth, a tiny smile quirking the right corner of his lips, which was what Naruto had come to know as his version of raising an eyebrow (since he didn’t _have_ any eyebrows).

That was it. Naruto reached out to snatch the bun from Gaara’s hands; not expecting that, Gaara let him. Then Naruto tore off a reasonable chunk, and held it up to Gaara’s mouth. “Open wide,” he said firmly.

Green eyes widened.

Naruto suddenly realized what he was doing, and fought down a bright red blush – he didn’t have the mask to hide behind. “Come on, I’m not letting you starve,” he said, trying to sound like he wasn’t dying of nerves.

Gaara hesitated for another agonizing second. Then he leaned forward slightly, and delicately took the food into his own mouth. Naruto repressed a shiver as he felt the faintest brush of lips against his fingers.

_Damn it, why does he affect me so much?_

Distracted, Naruto didn’t realize what Gaara was doing until the bun had been snatched back. He blinked at Gaara, who looked away. “I’ll eat more,” was the quiet answer to the unspoken question.

“Oh… good.” Naruto wasted a moment wishing that he could have continued to feed Gaara, before logic reasserted itself. He didn’t want to scare Gaara off, remember? But it was getting harder and harder…

**_What a very accurate way to put it._ **

**_Kyuubi!_** Naruto grimaced when that familiar voice resounded in his head. **_Why are you up? You don’t normally stir until mid-morning._**

**_Your perverted thoughts woke me,_** was Kyuubi’s amused answer. **_Honestly, you humans. Letting the most ridiculous things hold you back from your base natures. Just jump the boy already, brat._**

**_Gaara’s not a boy, he’s a man – and he’s my good friend,_** Naruto told the demon fox firmly. **_I’ve told you time and again that you won’t understand._**

There was the phantom swish of annoyed tails, in the recesses of his mind. **_You are all squealing children to me,_** Kyuubi pointed out. **_And I have had centuries of understanding._**

**_That’s different, okay? We’ve argued about this for ages, just drop it._ **

**_Fine, fine._** There was a yawn with lots of teeth in it. **_I’ll let you get on with your pathetic lives, you’re right that it’s too early to be awake. Are you going to let me out soon?_**

**_Not while we’re here. When you’re outside you’re too noticeable, and there are shinobi in Konoha who are smart enough to suspect something and probe deeper._ **

**_I will rend them from limb to limb!_** Kyuubi snarled. **_What they did to me –_**

**_You already paid the entire village back in blood._** Naruto’s mental voice was fierce. **_Don’t talk to me about debts owed._**

**_…very well._** Kyuubi’s presence faded. **_Do not disturb my rest again, brat._**

**_I’ll try my very best, your majesty._ **

Kyuubi ignored his sarcasm, and his presence vanished altogether – back in sleep, Naruto knew. He shook his head to clear the lingering echoes, and then, back in the real world, grabbed his tea and gulped down a few mouthfuls. The slight burning served to wake him up.

Gaara was chewing placidly, looking out of the window. Naruto was glad to see his bun almost finished.

“You should eat up,” Gaara said, still staring into the distance. “I think Kakashi will end the chase soon.” He didn’t mention Naruto’s bout of spacing-out, too used to those mental conversations between Kyuubi and its host.

Naruto sighed. “And then we have the written test. I hate written tests.” He delved into the food again.

He was almost done with the last meat bun when the clones sent a pulse of chakra down the link that bound them, letting them know that the chase was at an end. Gaara pulled out enough money to cover the bill and put it on the table as Naruto pulled his mask back on, still chewing. Then they used their modified _kawarimi_ , where rather than swapping themselves with another object in the area, they used their links with their clones to swap themselves.

They arrived in front of a building with two puffs of smoke, startling those around them. Kakashi, who had been about to push open the door to the building, turned back to stare at them. Gaara stared placidly back. Naruto swallowed, and then tilted the mask slightly up, popped the last bit of bun into his mouth, and let the mask fall again.

Kakashi’s eye narrowed. “Those were clones,” he said. It wasn’t a question. Surprised murmuring rose from around them. Since cloning yourself split a shinobi’s power in half, it was unusual that a clone could keep up with Kakashi when the others with their full skill were struggling.

Naruto nodded, ignoring them. “It’s not against the rules, since there weren’t any. Plus, we were hungry.”

That single eye turned to Gaara, who shrugged slightly. Apparently deciding that it wasn’t worth confronting the Kazekage, Kakashi turned back to the door. Opening it with a flourish, he gestured for them to follow before disappearing inside.

They were led to an exam hall that looked like the one in the chuunin exam years ago, only that this one now was smaller. Less examinees, he supposed; the other half who had followed Gai weren’t there, probably in another exam venue.

Raido was telling them about the written test, about how many points for each right answer and how many points deducted for each wrong answer and about getting kicked out if caught cheating. Naruto tuned him out and waited impatiently for the test to begin.

When the test finally started, Naruto and Gaara finished writing in record time, setting up as many anti-cheating barriers they could think of – wards to confound, to block, to hide. When they were done, they turned their papers face-down and cancelled the jutsus. Gaara sat back in his seat, crossing his arms over his chest and closed his eyes in a meditative trance – he could sleep now that he had arrived at an agreement with Shukaku, but it would be foolish to sleep here.

Naruto sat back as well, but he didn’t idle. Instead, he subtly examined all those present. His former teammates were stronger than ever, but the darkness in Sasuke – the curse seal, amongst other things – had also grown. Sakura’s power had increased exponentially, but her control over it was solid, Naruto could tell from the way it flowed within her. Being Tsunade’s apprentice had done wonders for her.

He was glad that the Hyuuga cousins and their respective teams were with Gai. The ones who would pose the most threat to Naruto’s identity being revealed were in those teams – the Byakugan, if focused correctly, would be able to identify Naruto by his unique chakra patterns. Shino’s bugs had some bug sense that allowed them to do the same, only that it was by the _taste_ of his chakra. Then there was the Inuzuka nose, both Kiba’s and Akamaru’s.

Of course, Naruto had designed jutsus to hide his smell and shield the sight of his chakra from sight-based bloodline limits, and he could sense Shino’s bugs well enough to keep out of their way, but he wasn’t _completely_ sure that his precautions would stand up to close scrutiny or persistent stalking by bugs and dogs.

He was just glad that Ino wasn’t in the exam. That mind technique of hers, if it got past his mental barriers, would ruin his disguise in an instant.

Something caught his attention. A few shinobi in the front rows reeked of _snake_. Naruto’s eyes narrowed. So he and Gaara had been right to worry. Orochimaru was going to try something during the exam again. Geez, how unoriginal.

So, Sasuke as a problem was almost guaranteed, with Orochimaru’s presence confirmed. That just left the Akatsuki, and if he believed his spy’s information, there was going to be trouble there, too. And the thing was the he _did_ believe the information, because of what he’d promised in exchange. He really didn’t want to help Sasuke – well, help or hinder, it depended on your point of view – but he’d promised. Naruto sighed.

Everything came back to Sasuke, really. It was annoying.

“Time’s up,” Raido announced. The other examiners began collecting papers. “The results will be announced in half an hour, you have a break until then.”

He saw Sakura look half-disappointed, half-relieved. There was no ‘tenth question’ this time, and Naruto thought her a fool for expecting it. This was the jounin exam, and childish tricks like the tenth question did not have a place here. Such lessons that could be taught from tricks like those would have been learned long ago; here, it was your skill to _survive_ that was tested.

He was about to sit and meditate like Gaara, when he realized that the few people he knew were coming towards him. Oh, joy.

Sakura looked a little scared, but determined. Sasuke just looked like he had a stick up his ass, as always. Chouji had opened another bag of chips, Shikamaru was just… Shikamaru, hanging back behind his friends.

“Kisune-san,” Sakura said politely – she seemed to be their official spokesperson. Naruto figured it was because it was impolite to talk with your mouth full (which ruled out Chouji), or looking completely uninterested in conversation (which ruled out Shikamaru), or insulting the other person constantly (which ruled out Sasuke). “May we ask you and Gaara-san a question?”

Gaara wasn’t going to move, Naruto could tell. It was up to him, then. Damn Gaara. He tried to match Sakura for politeness – when had she gotten so diplomatic? “You just did, but I guess you can ask another,” he said, keeping his voice neutral.

Sasuke rolled his eyes at that, and stepped forward. “It’s no use being polite, Sakura,” he snapped. He fixed that black gaze on Naruto. “We want to know what you and Gaara –” there was veiled contempt when he spoke Gaara’s name, and Naruto’s fists curled, “– are doing here.”

“Sasuke…” Shikamaru sighed while Sakura turned pale. “Gaara-san is the Kazekage, you should show some respect.”

“He tried to raze the village and kill us all,” Sasuke said bluntly, unusually suicidal, even for him. His eyes burned. “He should be kept behind bars, or under watch, but he ends up being made the Kazekage? Fools.”

Naruto knew that this resentment stemmed from Sasuke’s own life – like Gaara, he’d almost committed an unforgivable wrong, but he was kept under constant surveillance while Gaara had been, in his eyes, rewarded. Naruto understood all that. But anger still flared in him, and he still felt the urge to beat Sasuke up. It was like when they were kids all over again.

“You _bastard_ ,” he hissed, standing in one smooth movement. He wished he was taller; right now, he was Sasuke’s height. “You know _nothing_ about Gaara and what he’s been through. You’re just a whiny little shit, bitter as always!”

They were all staring at him wide-eyed, with varying levels of fear – in Sasuke’s case, no fear at all. His eyes were narrowed, but oddly, they were narrowed in thought. “There’s something… familiar about you,” he said slowly.

_Oh, shit._

Then Gaara stood as well, effectively freezing everyone. Cold green eyes fixed on Sasuke, who stared back almost as if he couldn’t help himself. “If this is Konoha hospitality, I am afraid I find it lacking,” Gaara said in that quiet way of his that made blood run cold. He picked up his huge gourd and easily shouldered it, and then began walking off without another word.

Naruto wavered for a second, but Gaara won out over Sasuke. With one final glare that Sasuke couldn’t see, he hurried after the redhead.

He had the feeling that Gaara was unhappy with him for some reason, and when they emerged from the building, his suspicion was confirmed when Gaara ignored him, finding a tree and sitting under it, resuming the meditative stance again. Naruto grimaced, and sat next to him, peering at him worriedly through the mask. “Gaara…?”

No answer.

“I’m sorry that I lost my temper.”

No answer.

“It’s just that Sasuke was saying all those stupid things about you…”

No answer.

“Damn it, Gaara!”

To his surprise, Gaara finally opened his eyes, but Naruto sighed to see that the Kazekage was glaring. “Shut up, Naruto,” he said curtly.

Naruto snorted. “Look, I know you’re mad at me, just tell me why.”

Gaara gave him a Look. “No.”

He was unmoved even after twenty-five minutes of Naruto’s whining and pleading, which was a feat – ten minutes was enough to wear down Kankurou and Temari, if he put his mind to it. Despite himself, Naruto was impressed, but also very frustrated.

He had to finally stop, though, when it was time to return. He sulked all the way back to the exam room, and he continued sulking in his seat. Anyone else would have thought him aloof, but he knew Gaara could tell, but continued ignoring him anyway.

Raido had a scroll in his hand. He read out the names of a good third of the people in there. When he finished, and Naruto didn’t hear his or Gaara’s name, he knew that those people who had been named had failed.

He was proved right. “All of the people I called please leave the room now. You’ve failed; better luck next time. Now –” Raido had to raise his voice, when people started getting up with black looks, making a lot of angry noise, “– congratulations to the rest of you. You have passed the first test, but there are two more to come, and they won’t be anywhere near as easy as this one, as you’ve probably expected.”

One of the examiners detached himself from the crowd of examiners in the corner and came to the front of the room, standing beside Raido. Genma hadn’t changed, either; that senbon was still in his mouth. Naruto wondered if he’d been sucking the same senbon for five years, and then kicked himself mentally for being frivolous.

“I hate to say it, but Raido’s known for his understatements,” Genma said cheerfully, smirking. He nudged Raido with his shoulder. “You shouldn’t have gotten their hopes up, you know.”

Raido rolled his eyes heavenwards. “Just get on with it, Genma.”

_They’re together,_ Naruto realized with an amused smile as Genma stomped on Raido’s foot, getting a glare in response. Genma grinned and patted Raido’s shoulder, and then stepped forward to face the staring examinees. “Let me tell it to you straight – the second exam’s going to be killer. And I don’t mean it in a metaphorical way.” There was an unholy light of amusement in his eyes. “It’s a bit like the chuunin exam, really, only this time you won’t have a team to help you. And your mission is not going to be easy. Each of you will be given one scroll, with your name on it.”

Here Genma paused, and one impatient Grass nin in the front row spoke up. “I heard about the chuunin exam, we have to steal other people’s scrolls, right? You Konoha nins don’t have any imagination.”

Genma’s eyes narrowed. “Oh? Well, how’s this for imagination?” He smirked, and it was not a nice smirk. “Each of you will have to collect at least five handprints on your scrolls.”

There were looks of bewilderment.

The smirk widened. “One handprint, in your opponent’s blood, for every opponent you defeat. Is that imaginative enough for you, Yuki-san?”

The Grass nin scowled. “Too easy,” he snapped. “We’ll just –”

“I know what ‘you just’. You’re thinking that you can grab some friends, swap some handprints, right?” Genma stepped forward again, and leaned into the Grass nin. “Wrong. Because, you see, if your handprint shows up more than once on someone else’s scroll… you’re out. Even if you have a _hundred_ handprints on your scroll.”

Disbelieving looks all around. A few people tried to work out the math. “But that means there will be barely ten people remaining. Including those from the other half!”

“And this is just the second exam, there’s still the third!”

“Well, yes.” Genma shrugged, and his grin showed teeth. “You didn’t think it’d be _easy_ , did you?”

**_Well, well._** Naruto barely managed not to jump when Kyuubi’s voice echoed in his head. **_This ought to be fun._**

And really – Naruto could not agree more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone who's still reading! This chapter's a bit slow, but there's some NaruGaa in it so I hope that makes up for the last of anything too exciting plot-wise :P and er I wasn't creative enough to come up with a very original jounin exam format so please excuse me for that.
> 
> I really don't like what canon Sasuke turned into, and I stopped watching Naruto pretty early on in Shippuden so I never got to see Sasuke's rehabilitation, BUT I can definitely understand how screwed-up he must have been from childhood. So while this chapter seems a little like gratuitous Sasuke-bashing, he does mature in the rest of the story.
> 
> As always, feel free to come shout at me on Twitter **@clarypuff**!
> 
> **Ashen Skies**   
>  _"There's something... familiar about you."_


	4. The Second Exam

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Five years ago, Naruto brought Sasuke back, but his only reward was anger and too much loneliness to bear -- and so he chose the other, previously unthinkable road.
> 
> He left.
> 
> Now it is Kitsune, strong and deadly, who returns to his old village with the Kazekage at his side. It is Kitsune who is determined to leave his past behind, but what happens when his past refuses to stay? It is the Kazekage who must be strong for his village and its allies, but what happens when it is Gaara who quietly breaks? When war erupts with Konoha at its heart, their resolve will be put to the test once and for all.

_To him that waits all things reveal themselves, provided that he has the courage not to deny, in the darkness, what he has seen in the light._

\-- Coventry Patmore

* * *

“Up at the crack of dawn _again_. Damn it. Suna’s lifestyle is much more reasonable, even though you get sand in the most disgusting places…”

Hinata and Lee, who were the two other shinobi unfortunate enough to have drawn the same gate number as Kitsune, looked at each other. “Hinata-san,” Lee said with a bright morning grin, “let us go and spread the cheer to our unhappy friend! We should all be in the best and brightest of moods as we face the challenge of the Forest of Death!”

Hinata’s white eyes widened. “Ah… Lee-san… I don’t think… that’s a good idea…”

Too late. Lee had bounded over to where Kitsune was, radiating goodwill, and Hinata was never one to let her friends go off and court death by themselves. She hurried after him.

“…face this wonderful day, and defeat your opponents with youthful vigour!” Lee was saying as Hinata drew close.

Kitsune’s head had swivelled to face Lee, and Hinata could _feel_ the stare boring into the grinning shinobi. She couldn’t tell if it was merely incredulous, or near homicidal. She intervened anyway. “Kitsune-san… um… a good morning to you!”

That mask turned to face her, and now she really could feel the full force of that stare even through the mask. But then, to her surprise, as Lee babbled on, Hinata felt the stare soften. “Lee-san,” Kitsune greeted. “Hyuuga-san. Nervous about the exam?”

Hinata relaxed a little, and smiled timidly. Kitsune was being surprisingly nice. “Yes, I’m nervous… but I’m also excited. I’ve never really faced this… this sort of challenge, by myself, before.”

“One week of lone survival!” Lee exclaimed happily, giving them a thumbs-up. “A fitting test of our worth! If I do not pass this exam I will run a thousand laps around Konoha!”

“Lee-san!” Hinata yelped. “I don’t… I don’t think that’s…!”

Kitsune, however, was nodding. “An admirable forfeit,” he said cheerfully. His bad mood seemed to be gone. “I know you’re good at taijutsu, Lee-san. It’s probably not that hard for you.”

His compliment was rewarded with a blinding grin, and Hinata could have sworn that for a moment he was standing posed on a rock, with waves crashing behind him. “Yes! I am very proud of my taijutsu skills!” Then the smile faded, and he said a little sheepishly, “Of course, my other skills need… work.”

Hinata felt a pang of sadness for Lee. She knew that many people had scoffed at Lee’s attempt at the jounin exams, saying that mere taijutsu skills might have gotten him through the chuunin exams, but it took more than that to make a jounin. Lee didn’t seem to mind, but she knew that no one could hear all those comments again and again and not be affected.

Kitsune seemed to be looking at her, as if reading her thoughts. Then he turned to face Lee again. “Lee-san,” he said seriously. “If this is the path you’ve chosen, then don’t let anything anyone says discourage you from it. Sure, if you’ve developed only one side of your skill, you may be at a disadvantage – but then, Lee-san, what you do is you damn well develop that skill until you’ve reached a place where _no one_ can laugh, because they know they won’t ever be able to reach it too. Create a fighting style that’s entirely yours, a style that no one else can copy because no one else _can_. I know you can do it, Lee-san. You’re already doing it.”

There was silence.

Hinata had to remember how to breathe. Lee was stunned, jaw hanging.

Kitsune laughed a little sheepishly, hand raising to the back of his head. “Ahaha. Sorry, I just got a little carried away there…”

Upon seeing that gesture, remembering that passion and _belief_ in that voice – Hinata and Lee were beyond stunned, and approaching shell-shocked. They stared at Kitsune, who seemed to realize what he had done, and froze.

There was another silence.

Then, Hinata whispered, “Naruto-kun…?”

Kitsune didn’t move. Then he laughed, a little too loudly. “Who? Naruto? I’ve never heard that name before, what an odd name, it sounds like something you eat _argh argh argh._ ”

The reason for his groaning was Lee, who had thrown himself bodily on Kitsune – no, _Naruto_ – and was bawling his head off, clinging onto Naruto for all he was worth. “ _Naruto-kun! You have returned, and the power of your youth shines brighter than ever! I knew that you would not let us down – mmph!_ ”

“Okay, okay! Enough, do you want the whole forest to hear you?” Naruto hissed, one hand over Lee’s mouth, the other prying the sobbing man off of him. “Lee, get a hold of yourself!”

Hinata had to laugh at the sight, Lee fighting to continue clinging onto Naruto and Naruto flailing around, trying to get him off – but since she was crying, her hands over her mouth to muffle the sound, the laugh came out a little hysterical. She saw Naruto glance over at her, and hurriedly wiped her tears away. It would not do to let Naruto-kun see her so wretched.

Sniffling, she went forward to helped Naruto pull at Lee. “Lee-kun, come on, the exam’s going to start soon…”

Lee finally let go, and beamed wetly at Naruto. “It is great to see you again, Naruto-kun,” he said earnestly. “We have all missed you dearly, even Neji, as much as he tries to hide it. My teammate has a gruff exterior, but do not let that fool you! His heart –”

“I get it, Lee,” Naruto interrupted, laughing. “I know what Neji’s like, I haven’t forgotten.” He formed a few hand seals, and when he next spoke, it wasn’t in that strange voice he had been using, but an older version of the voice they remembered. “And this is really embarrassing, but, well… I’ve missed you guys too.”

Hinata wanted to go hug him, but held herself back. “So have we, Naruto-kun… so have we.”

“Naruto-kun,” Lee said, “Are you really Kitsune?”

At that, Naruto sobered. “Yes,” he said, “I am. And no one else must know about it, okay? The two of you can’t tell _anyone_.”

“But the others…” Lee began in protest.

“I’m planning to reveal myself at the end of the exams, when I’ve become jounin.” Naruto said it as fact – _when_ he became jounin, not _if_. “And I’ll answer everyone’s questions then – as much as I can, anyway. But not yet.”

Lee and Hinata exchanged looks. Then Lee nodded. “I will keep your secret until you choose to reveal yourself, Naruto-kun!” he declared. “Nothing shall tear the truth from me! I will be like stone!”

“I promise… I won’t tell, Naruto-kun,” Hinata agreed. Then, in a rush, before she lost her nerve, she said quickly, “But can we please see you without a mask it’s been five years it’d be really nice to see your face again?”

“Sure. Just for a moment, okay?” Naruto reached up, and took off his mask.

Hinata turned bright red.

Lee gaped, and then gave Naruto _two_ thumbs up. “You have become a paragon of masculine youth, Naruto-kun!”

Naruto put his mask back on. “Really? Cool. You guys have grown too. Lee, you look more like Gai-sensei than ever, and Hinata-chan, you’ve grown prettier.”

Lee’s teary-eyed “Really? Like Gai-sensei, you said?” was loud, but it sounded far away in Hinata’s ears. Naruto-kun… Naruto-kun had called her _pretty_.

“And, you know, Hinata-chan… I can see that you’re grown confident. That’s good, you know? I always knew you could find your own place.”

Hinata’s cheeks felt so warm that she wondered if she was going to burst into flame.

Thankfully, at that moment, the shrill bugle of the horn sounded in the air, signalling the start of the exams. The gate swung open. Naruto waved at the two of them. “Good luck!” he said. “I won’t attack you guys, and neither will Gaara, but be careful of everyone else! And remember – _don’t let anyone know who I am._ ”

With another wave, he was gone, leaping through the trees.

Hinata took a deep breath and slapped her cheeks lightly. When she looked up again, her determined gaze met Lee’s equally determined one. He grinned at her, and she managed a smile in return. “Shall we, Lee-kun?” she said quietly.

He nodded. “Naruto-kun right now is far ahead of us,” he said, and both knew that he was not talking about physical distance. “We must not disappoint him, and catch up quickly.” He looked unusually solemn. “All of us, Hinata-san, all three of us, once lagged behind the rest. We swore to show them what we can do, but only Naruto-kun has really achieved it.” When he looked at Hinata again, his gaze was direct. “He will be our goal, Hinata-san. Let us catch up to him soon.”

She nodded, but a nagging worry made her say, “The stories about Kitsune… some of them… I can’t believe it’s Naruto-kun’s doing.” She bit her lip. “I… I don’t want to think of Naruto-kun… doing things like that.”

Lee nodded. “I understand, Hinata-san. But… I believe in Naruto-kun. What he has done, I believe he did for a reason. We must not judge him yet, but wait for him to tell us himself.” He flashed her a smile. “Do you not believe in him too, Hinata-san?”

“I do!” Hinata said without hesitation.

“Then let’s continue believing in him,” Lee said firmly. He gave her a ridiculous sweeping bow. “After you, Hinata-san. Good luck!”

She gave him a more solid smile. “Thank you, Lee-kun… The best of luck to you, too.” And she leapt into the trees, hearing Lee following her for a while, and then taking another path, the sounds of his footsteps fading.

Somewhere in this forest, Naruto-kun was alive, and stronger than ever.

She, too, would have to grow stronger, and show Naruto-kun one day that his belief in her – like her belief in him – was justified.

* * *

After an hour of running, Naruto found a clearing that would do. He looked around for a nice flat rock, and then sat down in a meditative pose.

Birds sang. Wind blew. Grass whistled.

And then, tired of the eyes watching him, Naruto said without opening his eyes, “Either fight me or go away. I don’t appreciate being watched like some zoo exhibit.”

There was a pause. Then, with a faint rustling of leaves, someone leapt down from a branch onto the grass. Naruto sighed, and opened his eyes to peer at the Sand nin trying to look confident, when Naruto could clearly hear his rapid heartbeat and smell the fear. Well, to his credit, the fear was tempered with the excitement of impending battle, but it was still fear.

“Kitsune,” the Sand nin said with bravado. “Fight me like a man!”

Naruto snorted. “Are you mad?”

The Sand nin stared.

“First, I don’t know you, so you have no right to call me by my name alone. Secondly, if you want a battle, ask _nicely_. Let me tell you, it’s never a good idea to anger someone who can easily grind you into the dust. Or someone on friendly terms with your Kage, you’ve no doubt seen me walking around your village with Gaara.”

The Sand nin continued to stare.

“Well?”

“Uh… Kitsune… san?”

Naruto nodded at him to continue.

“Kitsune-san. Uh… will you battle with me?”

Grinning smugly to himself – he just _loved_ scaring his opponents, it was great feeling like the king of the world – Naruto jumped down from the rock in one fluid movement. “Sure!” he said brightly. “Ninjutsu only? A taijutsu showdown? No-holds barred bloody war?”

“Uh…”

“Can’t decide, huh. Why don’t we ask your Kazekage to make the choice for you, then?”

The Sand nin’s eyes widened impossibly. His face drained of blood.

“Oh, Gaara…!” Naruto sing-songed.

There was the soft whisper of sand. Then Gaara emerged from the shadow of a tree, eliciting a squeak from the Sand nin. He glared at Naruto. “Do not toy with my shinobi,” he ordered.

Naruto gave him an exaggerated bow. “Yes, O Kazekage-sama.”

Gaara scowled. Then he turned to the almost-but-not-yet shaking shinobi. “You are Nagasaki? Nagasaki Shin?”

The Sand nin straightened upon hearing his name. Pride flashed across his eyes – his Kazekage knew him! Naruto felt a little better towards the guy, he clearly was part of the group in Suna who supported Gaara –a group that was quickly growing in number, to Naruto’s pleasure.“Yes, Kazekage-sama!”

Gaara nodded curtly. “Did you think it wise to challenge one of the strongest shinobi around to a battle, not an hour into the exam?”

Nagasaki sagged a little, but he answered honestly. “Kazekage-sama, I know that in terms of passing the exam, it is a foolish move – but I wanted to test myself against someone whose strength has been proven. I wanted to go against the best, in order to see how much farther I need to go.”

Gaara’s features gentled. So far, Naruto knew that only he, Temari and Kankurou could see the tiny variations in Gaara’s expressions; for others, it was easier to tell by the aura that surrounded Gaara. Right now, the forbidding presence became less so, and Naruto watched as the Sand nin sensed it, and relaxed a little.

“That is an admirable sentiment, Nagasaki – but foolish. Suna needs jounin. Would you place your personal satisfaction over your village’s needs?”

Nagasaki looked horrified. “No, Kazekage-sama! I never – I wasn’t – That wasn’t my intention!”

Gaara’s upheld hand stopped him. “I understand,” he said. “I will not hold it against you. For now, as a shinobi of Suna, I order you to do your very best to pass this segment of the exam. And if you manage it – I will see to it that when we return to Suna, you will have a supervised battle against Kitsune.”

Nagasaki was fairly glowing with happiness. “Thank you, Kazekage-sama!”

Gaara nodded. “Go now.”

The Sand nin gave them both a deep bow, then turned and leapt soundlessly off into the forest. He was lost to sight in a second.

“I could have said _no_ to the battle, you know,” Naruto said conversationally.

“Yes. You could have.”

“I still can, you know.”

“Yes. You can.”

Naruto gave up. He hoisted himself back onto his rock and idly swung his legs. “Got a plan?” he asked.

“Do not be stupid.”

Naruto had to grin. He knew Gaara would have noticed as well. “Do you know which gate?”

“Two from Gate Seven, one from Ten. The single one is likely to meet up with the two.”

“That’s what I figured too. That’ll take us maybe an hour or two. Three at the most. What then?”

“We stalk people.” Gaara’s voice was matter-of-fact.

“Must it be _him_?” Naruto whined. “There are others who probably need the help more.”

Gaara glared at him. “ _You_ were the one who made the promise. I was merely dragged into it. In any case, we can send bunshins to stalk him so we do not have to do it ourselves.”

“Okay, okay.” Naruto hopped down from his perch, grinning. It was nice to be on the same wavelength as Gaara almost all the time. “Let’s go, then. Lots of killing to do and all.”

It took them a while to track down the shinobi who had smelled of Orochimaru. They were wearing Cloud hitai-ate, and Naruto spared a moment to feel regret for the original owners, who were probably dead. Cloud was unlucky this year, losing their entire team of jounin examinees. Sound nin had been trained by Orochimaru to be cruel and merciless.

They found their targets a moment too late, however, even for all their speed. The Sound nin must have gone straight after Sasuke, and had found him quicker, since their gates had been closer – Naruto’s had been Twelve, Gaara’s Fourteen. Naruto suppressed a curse as he stopped beside Gaara, standing on a large branch overlooking a large clearing.

Beneath them were the three Sound nin, facing Sasuke and Sakura. The girl must have headed straight for Sasuke as well; she had been at the gate just one up from his, so it would have been pretty easy.

He was surprised to feel a little wistful ache in his chest. In the past he would have been down there with them, glaring down the Sound nin with a confidence that would embarrass his teammates. His surprise turned to anger at himself – he had sworn to himself that he wouldn’t ever want Sasuke’s or Sakura’s friendships again, hadn’t he? Yet it still seemed that some part of him couldn’t let go of the two Konoha shinobi below.

One of the Sound nins was speaking. “…contact you, since all your mail is monitored and you are constantly watched. Orochimaru-sama apologizes for the delay.”

“Delay? It’s been five fucking years!” Sasuke snarled.

The Sound nin looked like he wanted to snarl something back, but held his tongue with difficulty. He bowed again. “Yes, Sasuke-sama. However, aside from the difficulty in communicating with you. Orochimaru-sama also felt that the wait would do you good.”

“What the hell _good_ would that be?”

“Konoha suffocates you, does it not?” The Sound nin smiled thinly. “You are watched, treated like a traitor, despised. Orochimaru-sama wished for you to understand fully that Konoha is not the place for you. He wanted to you accept your rightful place by his side without any lingering attachments to this place.”

“We don’t treat him like a traitor!” Sakura finally couldn’t take it anymore. “He has _friends_ here! We don’t care what he did before, we just accept him for who he is now – don’t you dare belittle that!”

The look the Sound nin gave her was one of disdain. “You do not understand Sasuke-sama,” he said dismissively. “You are not worthy of him. He deserves more than your little friendships. He deserves more than being caged, as Konoha does to him.”

“He’s not _caged_ , you bastard, he’s just monitored – and that’s expected, because of what he did. But it won’t last forever, and he’s not _restricted_ in any way!”

“Are you blind, little girl?” The Sound nin sneered at Sakura. “He is restricted in the most important area – his _power_. And if he cannot grow, how can he get his revenge?”

“Sasuke isn’t –”

“ _Enough_.” Sasuke sounded extremely impatient. “This is a waste of time. So you’ve come to bring me to Orochimaru, then?”

Both he and the Sound nins ignored Sakura’s horrified whisper of “ _Sasuke-kun_ …!” The Sound nin bowed. “Yes, Sasuke-sama. Many of the Konoha jounin who might be a problem are examiners; they will be occupied in watching the third part of the exam. We will make our escape then, in order to meet less resistance. We will each put our handprints on your scroll to ensure that you will pass, and with the girl’s handprint, you only need one more.”

“And you?”

“We will use the girl’s, and find others. Do not worry about us, Sasuke-sama, we are more than a match for most jounin hopefuls.”

Nothing showed on Sasuke’s face as he said, “And Sakura?”

“She will be disposed of,” was the prompt reply. “She has heard too much. If you wish, we will take care of her for you so you do not need to dirty your hands.”

Sakura was pale from all that she had heard, but even so she was well trained – she immediately went into battle stance. Not that it would help her much, Naruto noted – he could smell the level of power of each of the Sound nin, and Sakura’s power, and he knew that if all three of them attacked her she would put up a good fight, but stand no chance of winning.

Sasuke watched her for a moment, and then turned to stare thoughtfully at the Sound nin. He didn’t say anything.

“Sasuke-kun…” Sakura’s voice was soft, but steady. “I believe in you.”

And then she attacked.

Naruto and Gaara had to leap backwards as she slammed her fist into the ground, and while Gaara just looked on stoically from their new perch, Naruto felt his jaw drop to his feet at the huge furrows of broken ground that shot out from where Sakura’s fist was. _My god, she’s become a younger baa-chan!_ he thought in amazement. _There goes any chance of her becoming more feminine._

The Sound nin and Sasuke had leapt backwards, as well. Sasuke was now standing on a branch, visible from the clearing – not bothering to conceal himself, but simply watching. The Sound nin were nowhere to be seen, however.

Sakura straightened, closing her eyes. Then she shot forward just as a volley of shuriken shot out towards where she had been; she threw herself at one of the trees and punched it – or something that was in front of it. There was a scream, and a Sound nin appeared to the right of the tree, staggering, clutching his arm – it dangled, probably broken.

Naruto made to move forward – best to intervene before the Sound nin really started attacking, and they would do their best to cause maximum damage now that Sakura had actually wounded one of them. But Gaara’s hand grabbing his stopped him. He turned to stare incredulously at Gaara.

Gaara looked steadily back, but there was a little anger in there, too – anger at who? At what? Naruto wasn’t sure, but right now he didn’t really care. He blinked when he heard Gaara’s voice in his head – when had Gaara activated the mind-speaking jutsu? **_We cannot intervene yet._**

**_Sakura’s going to get hurt!_ **

**_We need to see where Uchiha’s loyalty lies. If a fatal injury is about to be dealt and he does not move, then we will step in and take it that he is Orochimaru’s now. But until then, we must only watch._** Gaara’s grip tightened. **_You know it is the only way._**

**_You’re just going to stand here and –_ **

**_Do you think it makes me happy to watch a girl get hurt?_** Gaara was definitely angry now. **_And you – you profess anger towards Haruno, but here you are losing all rational thought at the first sign of her in danger!_**

That made Naruto blink. He could only gape at Gaara.

Green eyes were glittering, and hard. **_You know what you have to do._** And then Gaara let go, cutting their connection off abruptly. He turned away from Naruto to watch over the scene below, face an expressionless mask, arms crossed.

Naruto slowly turned to watch, as well, but while his eyes tracked the movements of the battle beneath him, his mind was busy trying to make sense of his own emotions. He did feel betrayed by Sakura, by Sasuke, by Kakashi – they had really hurt him, in their judgement of him, their dismissal of him. And he did hate them for that, just a little. But he still longed for their acceptance, that much he had admitted to himself long ago. He still longed for the ideal relationship he’d envisioned, when he’d first gotten a team – friends, teammates he could count on, a sensei he could admire, who would be like a father, a mentor.

What he wasn’t prepared for, Naruto realized, was how _strong_ that longing still was.

He couldn’t forgive them, not really – but he _wished_ he could. He wished he didn’t have to make the choice.

Damn.

Next to him, Gaara stiffened. Naruto tuned back into reality, and his mind finally registered what his eyes were seeing – Sakura, pinned to the ground by a heavy branch.

And a shower of shuriken, heading right towards her face.

Naruto was already starting forward, Gaara’s hands raising to direct his sand – when they both froze, mid-movement. A huge rush of relief swamped Naruto, and – he had to admit – a good part of it was also joy. Naruto almost overbalanced, overwhelmed, but sand caught him around the waist and pulled him back safely on the branch.

Sasuke was standing in front of Sakura, metal blades spinning. It looked like the four-bladed thing that he and Naruto had used during the fight with Zabuza; Sasuke had used it as a whirring shield, deflecting all the shuriken.

With the swish of displaced wind, the three Sound shinobi appeared in the clearing before Sasuke. Their spokesperson had his eyes narrowed. “Sasuke-sama,” he said. “What do you mean by this? If we are to successfully convey you to Orochimaru-sama, the girl must die.”

Sasuke let the blades whirl to a stop, but held them in his hand, almost casually. “You know,” he said conversationally, “the Hokage let me see some interesting scrolls. About the techniques Orochimaru worked on, and their effects. And I really don’t think I want to let him have my body as some sort of useful shell.”

The Sound nin stiffened. “Orochimaru-sama intends to use your body, yes,” he said after a pause. “But with his power and yours, your brother will not stand as chance. You want to defeat your brother at all costs, right? It will be your body, and your mind will still be there – you will be able to savour every bit of your revenge. It is the only way you can get enough power to defeat Uchiha Itachi.”

“That’s what I used to believe,” Sasuke said, and the lightness was gone. “I used to be scared that I couldn’t be strong enough. That’s why I turned to Orochimaru when he gave me his offer. It was an easy way out – the power was guaranteed to me. But you know… I’ve had time to think. And I want to defeat my brother by _myself_. With my own power, because otherwise I won’t have surpassed him on my own merit.” His smile was humourless, and a little self-mocking, a little bitter, as he added, “Oddly enough it’s the people I used to despise who taught me that.”

“You would listen to the preaching of weaklings?”

“They taught me through their _actions_ ,” Sasuke replied. “And if I turn to Orochimaru for power, I will be _less_ than they are. And I refuse to be less than the likes of that muscle-bound idiot Lee, or the Hyuuga, or…” he paused, and then smirked. “Forget it. It doesn’t matter.”

The Sound nin smiled coldly. “You are right, it doesn’t matter. But what doesn’t matter is whether you agree to come or not. Our orders are clear – we will take you with us whether you are willing or otherwise, and to eliminate any obstacles. The girl will die, and you will next awake in Orochimaru-sama’s stronghold!”

They leapt forward. Sasuke stood his ground, ignoring Sakura’s screams of ‘ _Let me out of here, damn it!’_ and readied himself for an attack –

– which never came.

The battle cries of the Sound nin petered out as they looked down at themselves. Sakura’s screaming stopped. Sasuke stared. Naruto whipped around to stare at Gaara, who had his arms held out before him.

“ _Sabaku Kyuu._ ” His voice echoed clearly through the silent clearing. The eyes of everyone in the clearing widened – they knew what was coming. The Sound nins’ mouths opened, presumably to scream, but too late. Naruto whipped out a scroll and hastily looked for the object he wanted to summon.

“ _Sabaku Sousou._ ”

It rained blood.

Naruto triumphantly materialized the umbrella with a white puff of smoke. He opened it just in time to shield himself and Gaara from the splatters – they hadn’t brought much clothing, and he did not want to waste time scrubbing out bloodstains during the exam.

When the shower of blood stopped, Naruto sealed the umbrella back into the scroll – it was the one he used whenever Gaara did his Desert Coffin-Funeral combo, so he didn’t bother to clean it as it was completely covered with old bloodstains already – and said, “That was anticlimactic.”

Gaara shot him an annoyed look.

“Well, it was!”

“My techniques,” Gaara said coldly, “are never _anticlimactic_.”

Naruto grinned; Gaara was so cute! He was like a cat, all affronted pride and injured dignity. “I’m not saying your _technique_ is anticlimactic, I’m just saying that it was an anticlimactic end to the battle.”

“That is the same thing.”

“No it isn’t!”

“Uh…” Sakura’s voice, filtering up through the branches, was a little shell-shocked (probably due to being bathed in blood) but slowly gaining back equilibrium. “Gaara-san and Kitsune-san?”

“Yes?”

“Thanks for the help.”

“No problem.”

“Now, not to be rude or anything, but will someone _get me out from under this damn tree!_ ”

Gaara gestured. Some sand from the ground obediently rose, and lifted the branch. Sakura scrambled out. The sand dropped the branch again, and returned to its inert state.

“Thanks.” Sakura squinted into the trees. “Um, is there any reason why you don’t want to come down?”

Naruto peered through the leaves. “Well, the look on Uchiha’s face is one reason.”

It was true: Sasuke looked murderous. “I could have handled it,” he said through gritted teeth. “You didn’t have to interfere!”

Geez. He really, _really_ hadn’t changed personality-wise. But he’d finally done the right thing after so many years, so that cut him a lot of slack. Still, Naruto wasn’t going to take it lying down. “You’re welcome,” he called sarcastically. “It was such a pleasure helping you, really it was.”

“Helping us? You just crushed them into sand! I thought you used to at least leave bodies?”

“Sasuke-kun, you really shouldn’t talk to the Kazekage like that,” Sakura began.

“We could have gotten three handprints,” Sasuke snapped, cutting them off. “Now we –”

There were three thuds.

Sakura turned green, and Sasuke had to shut himself up at the sight of three severed hands on the ground. Naruto broke into a grin, and turned to Gaara. “Man, you think of everything,” he said admiringly. “I didn’t know your control over the _Sousou_ was so good!”

Gaara’s look clearly said, _Of course._

They finally left their perch and landed lightly in the clearing as Sasuke and Sakura got out their scrolls. Sakura winced a little as she picked up one hand, while Sasuke had no expression as he grabbed the other. They found a little convenient pool of blood, put the hands in, and then stamped the handprints on their scrolls.

Naruto had to fight back a hysterical laugh; it was like some X-rated grown-up version of potato-stamping in kindergarten. _Are those flower-shapes that you’re cutting, Sakura-chan? No, sensei, these are severed hands._

It wasn’t so funny when it came to his turn, though. Naruto grimaced as he took the severed stump of wrist from Sakura. This was a whole new twist on asking for someone’s hand.

Soon enough they were done. In order to prevent anyone else using the hands for their own scrolls, Gaara did a mini- _Sousou_ , and crushed them as well. Then, task completed and scrolls tucked away, the four of them stood in the blood-splattered clearing, staring at one another.

“Well… thank you, Gaara-san. Again,” said Sakura awkwardly. “And Kitsune-san, too.”

“What for? He didn’t do anything,” Sasuke said darkly.

It seemed that no matter how, where, or who Naruto was (or was pretending to be), Sasuke would always see him as an enemy. It was almost as if he had some Naruto Radar that let him know when to be a bastard. “You know, most people would refrain from repeatedly insulting one of the most well-known assassins in the world,” Naruto pointed out, irritated.

Fire sparked in Sasuke’s eyes. “If you want a fight, I’ll gladly play along,” he said challengingly.

“We just saved your asses, I’m not about to waste Gaara’s efforts by killing you,” Naruto snapped.

Sasuke bristled. “I think you’ll find that killing me isn’t as easy as you thought!”

Sakura was looking back and forth between them, an odd expression on her face. “You know,” she interjected, “I almost feel like I’m back in the past again, watching Sasuke-kun and Naruto fight.”

Naruto’s jaw shut with a _clack_ , and he was once again grateful for the mask that hid his ‘Oh Shit’ expression. He didn’t dare look at Gaara, but he could feel unhappiness radiating from his friend – Gaara had warned him time and again to be careful about hiding who he was around his friends. He’d _said_ that they were more perceptive than Naruto gave them credit for.

“Don’t mention that name in front of me,” Sasuke snarled, not noticing anything amiss.

Luckily, that distracted Sakura. “Will you just get over it already?” she snapped back. “It’s mostly our faults that Naruto left! Don’t act like you were the only injured party!”

 _What?_ Naruto could only watch, stunned, as for the first time before his eyes Sakura faced Sasuke down. Over _him_ , Naruto.

“As if you have the right to –” Sasuke broke off, startling Naruto out of his thoughts as he followed narrowed black eyes to see Gaara walking off. “Where are you going?”

Gaara ignored him.

“Sasuke-kun,” Sakura said, fighting to keep her voice level and succeeding, “Gaara-san doesn’t answer to us. He has his own exam to complete.”

And so did he, Naruto remembered. He grimaced – why was it that when it came to his former teammates, he kept getting thrown off his game? He gave Sakura a quick bow, drawing their attention to him. “I need to be going too,” he said hastily. “See you guys around.”

He had to run to catch up with Gaara, who was by then leaping through the trees. He managed to draw level with them, and realized that – once again – Gaara was ignoring him, upset about something. He hated this feeling of distance, and felt real worry creep over him. Was Gaara finally getting tired of him or something? Did Gaara want him to remain in Konoha, and not go back to Suna with him?

“Gaara,” he said quietly. “Please tell me what’s wrong.”

His anxiety and sincerity must have gotten through, because Gaara slowed, and then stopped. Naruto followed suit, clinging to a branch facing Gaara’s. Those beautiful green eyes looked at him for a long moment, inscrutable.

Then Gaara gave a tiny sigh. “I cannot say,” he said, tiny changes in his expression telling Naruto he was troubled. “I do not fully understand it myself – but what I do know is that I must not say anything. This is something that you have to figure out yourself, Naruto.”

Damn. He really wasn’t good at this stuff. He gave Gaara a pleading look.

The corners of Gaara’s mouth turned up in that small smile that Naruto loved, because it only came out when they were alone – but this time, there was sadness around the edges. Naruto didn’t like that at all. “Figure it out yourself,” Gaara said again.

Naruto sighed.

Gaara looked towards the tower at the centre of the forest. When he spoke again, it was all business, the Kazekage at his most powerful. “We should set our plans in motion. First, the bunshins; then we need to seek out those we want handprints from. Remember, I do not wish to skew the results of this exam any more than necessary.”

“I know, I know. No helping people I like, only intervene when lives are in danger, blah blah.” Naruto made a face. “Your Kazekage’s position takes away all the fun, you know.”

A hand of sand smacked him on the ankle, causing him to yelp. “Bunshins,” Gaara reminded him.

“Yeah, yeah.” Naruto raised his hands and performed the seals as Gaara did. Five bunshins of each man appeared.

“Oh, um…” Naruto remembered that he needed to let Gaara know Lee and Hinata knew about him, and winced. Gaara was not going to be happy. “Hinata-chan and Lee kind of… know.”

To his surprise, Gaara merely nodded. “I expected as much.”

Naruto sputtered. “What? Why?”

“The two of them hold you in high esteem, and are loyal to you. You would have let your guard down around them.” There was a hint of amusement in his eyes. “For all your training as Kitsune, you are remarkably weak at hiding yourself around people you know.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Naruto grumbled. “So I’m not used to lying and hiding around my friends.”

Gaara’s gaze softened. “That is a part of you,” he said simply. “It is a good thing.” Then, when Naruto was scrambling for something to say that wasn’t _I love you_ , Gaara turned businesslike. “Naruto, your clones will tail the Uchiha, Haruno, Akimichi Chouji, Lee and the female Hyuuga. Mine will follow the other Hyuuga, his female teammate, the Aburame, the Inuzuka, and my own shinobi – we met him earlier.”

“Sure.” Naruto watched as the bunshins sped off, and came to a belated realization. “Oh, hey – you want more bunshins to follow the other two Suna nins? It’s not very fair that we’re only going to watch over the Konoha ones.”

“No, my other two nins are more than capable of looking after themselves, and they will have found each other by now. Nagasaki is the one I am worried about, for he will seek out dangerous opponents instead of his fellow shinobi for help.” A brief smile. “He is much like you and the Uchiha.”

“I am not…!” Naruto trailed off, and then grouchily said, “Okay, so maybe we’re a _little_ alike.”

Gaara chose not to comment, but there was a smugness to his tone as he said, “We should not seek out the last two handprints until the last moment, when teams are already heading to the tower. Accordingly, we should find somewhere to settle around the perimeter of the tower and prepare ourselves.”

Naruto understood the reasoning behind Gaara’s plan – whoever they went after was bound to lose, and since Gaara refused to kill anyone else (the Sound nins were an exception, since they weren’t real jounin candidates), that meant that their victims would have used up their one allocated handprint and would be desperate not to lose again. Which meant that they would fight with everything they had, the next time they met someone, which increased the chances of someone dying. To avoid that, Naruto and Gaara would hold back until those who were going to be out were out, and then head after them.

And other than that, there was still… “Gaara. We haven’t heard the last from Orochimaru, have we?”

“No, Orochimaru will not be set back so easily. He likely cannot do anything further during this part of the exam, but during the third test, when so many foreign shinobi will come to Konoha to watch the battles… that is when he has the best chance to strike.”

“And there’s still Akatsuki to deal with. We had a general idea about what Orochimaru’s going to try, but we still haven’t the faintest idea about the Akatsuki side. We don’t know what they want, except the bijuu – and that’s only a means to an end. And that _end_ may have something to do with Konoha, from what we’ve heard.”

“Yes.” Gaara stared moodily into the distance. “Furthermore, we have that promise of yours to carry out.”

Naruto grimaced. “I had no choice –”

“I know. I simply meant that it is yet another item on our agenda.”

“Hmph.” Naruto didn’t say anything for a while. Then: “I have this really bad feeling, Gaara. Something very big is going to happen, and soon.”

“I have had the same feeling for a while, too. There is nothing we can do now, however, but watch. And wait.”

“Which is all we seem to be doing, nowadays.”

“One of the disadvantages of being powerful and responsible.”

“Yeah. Damn.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first Konoha Nine reunion! I love Lee, and Hinata without the crush on Naruto (canon pairings? What canon pairings?) because I think she's honestly so much better as her own person and not just, y'know, the shy love interest. It just happened naturally without me planning it that they were the first to discover Naruto's identity.
> 
> And there's some Sasuke growth as well! And some hints of Sasuke and Sakura, though honestly I don't ship them anymore -- Sakura and Lee is where it's at, and Sasuke can just... go be emo on his own. However, again, I wrote this long ago (read the tags!), and I can't be bothered to rewrite this, so this is what you're getting. In any case, the Sasuke/Sakura pairing never gets more than referenced a bit through the story.
> 
> And then there's poor Gaara, torn between being happy for Naruto back with all his precious people and terrified that he'll lose Naruto to them again for good. Aww.
> 
> Thanks to all the people who commented and gave kudos! Even just a throwaway comment makes me really happy to read (and also reminds me to post chapters because I didn't completely forget, nooooo) and I'm glad to see people are enjoying the story!
> 
> As always, come chat with me on Twitter **@clarypuff** if you want!
> 
> **Ashen Skies**  
>  _“I used to be scared that I couldn’t be strong enough.”_  
> 


	5. Chess Pieces

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Five years ago, Naruto brought Sasuke back, but his only reward was anger and too much loneliness to bear -- and so he chose the other, previously unthinkable road.
> 
> He left.
> 
> Now it is Kitsune, strong and deadly, who returns to his old village with the Kazekage at his side. It is Kitsune who is determined to leave his past behind, but what happens when his past refuses to stay? It is the Kazekage who must be strong for his village and its allies, but what happens when it is Gaara who quietly breaks? When war erupts with Konoha at its heart, their resolve will be put to the test once and for all.

_You cannot play at chess if you are kind-hearted._

\-- French proverb

* * *

“Okay, so… Lee’s in, and Sasuke’s in. Sakura’s out, though.”

“I would have thought Haruno would stick to Uchiha? The opponents he defeated would be hers as well. Furthermore, she already had three prints.”

“No, she and Sasuke split not long after we let them. Apparently they both needed time alone.”

Gaara blinked. “How… very like a feuding couple.”

“Yeah, isn’t it?” Naruto’s grin was brief, and faded quickly. He still hadn’t resolved his feelings towards his teammates, and if he could help it he wasn’t going to until he really _had_ to. “Anyway, Lee’s in, too. And Chouji and Sakura fought your Suna nins, so that’s how I know that one of your pair is out, but the other’s probably in. They were honourable, they only fought one on one, and they didn’t make their opponents fight them one after the other, even if they could have won that way.”

“Of course. I interviewed them personally before allowing them to take the exam. The position of jounin is too important for me to permit any irresponsible shinobi to hold it.”

“Interviews? Really?” Naruto frowned. “I don’t remember you having interviews.”

“You were hunting down that Waterfall S-Class nin, if I recall.”

“Oh, the one right before I went to meet Danzo.” Naruto made a face at the memory. “Right, so where were we?”

“Uchiha, Lee, one of my Suna pair.”

“Yeah, them, and also that Grass nin who talked too much, what was his name, Yuki? I think that’s it.” He scowled. “Hinata-chan’s second handprint was his fifth. I just hope the idiot got himself defeated twice or more. Oh, and this one Mist guy with the crazy tattoos, and the Rock guy who smells like smoke. That’s it for me, I think.”

“For my part, as we have expected, the male Hyuuga is in, as is the Aburame.”

“Shino? Whoa. Didn’t know he was that strong.”

“His bloodline limit is unique, and many do not expect it.”

“Yeah, that’s for sure. Okay, continue.”

“Nagasaki is also in. There is one other Mist nin who defeated both the Inuzuka and the weapons girl. She is strong and vicious, and I believe she will have gathered enough prints.”

“A girl?” Naruto whistled. “And from Mist, too… Mist nin are scary. Who else?”

“Going by a battle my bunshin witnessed, very likely there will also be another Grass nin, the one with no hair. There may be others who did not cross paths with any of those our bunshins were watching, but these few are likely all in.”

“So… Sasuke, Lee, Neji, Shino, two Suna nins, two Mist nins, one Grass, one Rock.” Naruto counted them off his fingers. “Okay, we avoid these people and head for the others, then. I happen to know of a couple of Rock who’ve been going around in a pair, we can take them on together to save them and get that last two prints.”

Gaara frowned. “If they were fighting in a pair, I would have expected them to win more often than not, since most of the other competitors are alone.”

“Well, yeah… but they were the first pair that Sasuke met after he and Sakura split, and he was in a foul mood. He trashed them without mercy.” Naruto grinned. “Then, of all the luck, they ran into your two shinobi, so they didn’t have their pair advantage and your nins won pretty easily. You know, if they were less honourable and fought everyone else together, those two would have sailed through this exam. It’s like they’re one mind in two bodies.”

“Fujiwara and Hidaka are childhood friends.” A small, pleased smile passed Gaara’s lips briefly. “They bring out the best in each other. However, they need to work on their individual skills – when I approved their application, I reminded them that there will come a day when they will face opponents on their own.”

“So that’s why they decided to try working individually this time,” Naruto said in realization.

“Yes, that is part of the reason.”

“Right.” Naruto got to his feet and stretched. “Let’s go find that Rock pair, they’ll be an easy win, and then head to the tower.”

The Rock pair was hiding, not surprisingly. Most of those who had lost were hiding, recovering from their wounds. Naruto and Gaara followed the scent of their power to a rocky stream, dotted with large boulders. They looked around.

“There,” Naruto said at last.

“There as well.” Gaara nodded to yet another large boulder.

“Right in the middle of the water.”

They both sighed.

**_Hey, brat. Let me have this one, I need the exercise._ **

**_What exercise? I just sparred with you yesterday! And a day before that!_ **

**_You call that exercise? You set so many limits that I might as well have been sleeping!_ **

**_Well excuse me for not wanting to let the whole village know that you’re here!_ **

There was an annoyed growl. **_I know the need for secrecy, brat. Your puny intelligence can’t compare to mine._**

**_Then why are you even asking?_ **

**_Those two are Rock nins, and there are no human presences anywhere near. No one will recognize me. Come on, brat, even you have to see how perfect this set-up is. I can pop out, fight them, and pop back in with no one the wiser._ **

Naruto sighed, and turned to Gaara. “Hey… Gaara?” The Kazekage’s eyes were unfocused – talking to Shukaku, most like. “Gaara!”

Gaara blinked, returning to reality. When he saw Naruto’s expression, he said, “The fox, too?”

“He makes a pretty good argument,” Naruto admitted.

“Shukaku is also being rather insistent.” Gaara bit his lip in thought, and Naruto bit back a whimper at the sight. “I think we can allow them this fight.”

“Uh… yeah. Sure.” Naruto forced himself to turn away from Gaara’s sexy little look of concentration as he began the seals to create the special bunshins that they needed: completely empty bunshins, without minds so that the demons could occupy them, and without form so that they would take on the characteristics of the demons’ own human forms – apparently each of the bijuu had one, aside from their animal forms.

His fingers completed the last familiar seal. Two mini-explosions of smoke later, Kyuubi and Shukaku were standing next to their hosts, happily stretching. “Remember, nothing too huge, and definitely no turning into your demon forms,” Naruto warned. “And no killing, okay?”

Kyuubi gave him a disdainful look – and he could do _disdainful_ really well, with his upturned eyes and fox-sharp face. He was the tallest among the four of them, with a lean, flexible body and long red hair to match his eyes. Naruto had always thought that, if given girly clothes (and a fake chest), Kyuubi would make a damn hot geisha, if a delinquent-looking one.

Of course, that time that he had accidentally let the thought slip, Kyuubi had howled in his head for the next few nights, keeping him from sleeping. His eye-bags during that time could have rivalled Gaara’s.

“Don’t treat us like idiots, brat,” Kyuubi snapped. “We’ve lived centuries longer than you, we know what we should do.” In one quick, fluid movement, he was wrapped around Shukaku, nuzzling the other demon’s head. “Don’t mind my brat, Shukaku. He’s stupid, you know how humans are.”

Naruto eyed Shukaku warily. The racoon demon’s golden eyes were glaring murderously at him – his default look. When Naruto had first seen Shukaku’s human form, he’d known immediately where most of Gaara’s past bloodlust had originated. With his spiky black-and-yellow hair and shorter height, Shukaku would look just like any other guy on the streets (and he would be the bad boy type that girls liked, too) if not for the deadly hunger in his eyes.

“He’s looking down on me,” Shukaku growled, still glaring at Naruto even as Kyuubi slipped a hand into the fold of his robe – the demons always appeared in simple, old-fashioned robes. Naruto was used to the clothing by now, but what he would never get used to was the idea of two of the bijuu, great big murderous demons that they are, doing… _things_ … together. It boggled the mind.

“Shukaku,” Gaara said quietly, stepping forward, drawing the demon’s attention. Golden eyes looked towards him. “Naruto did not mean it that way. He was merely worried that you would get caught.”

The demon regarded Gaara for a moment. No one really understood why, but Shukaku seemed to have a soft spot for Gaara, all his attempts at eating the boy’s sanity notwithstanding – just like Kyuubi was unusually tolerant of Naruto’s impertinence. Then he turned in Kyuubi’s embrace and nipped the other demon’s neck with too-sharp teeth, before sliding easily out of his arms. “Let’s go,” he said without looking at any of them, heading towards one of the boulders where the Rock nins were hiding. “Blood now, sex later.”

Naruto shuddered, and Gaara winced. Kyuubi, however, grinned, showing pointed teeth. “Sounds good,” he fairly purred, and in a blur of superhuman speed leapt at the other boulder. He landed on all fours on top of the rock, and with a careless swipe of his hand – claws stronger than any stone and any metal extended – scored four deep scratches in the rock. “Come out, little shinobi! Come and play!”

The rock exploded, but Kyuubi had already leapt safely out of the way. The fox grinned at the Rock nin standing there, ready to do battle. If he was in his demon form, Naruto was pretty sure all nine tails would be waving happily.

Just upstream, Shukaku was prowling around the other large rock, eyes intent. Then he snarled. The rock dissolved into sand that streamed towards Shukaku, hovering around him in the air, while the exposed Rock nin hurriedly jumped backwards, startled, but he quickly found his balance. He glanced at Naruto and Gaara, standing on the banks, watching.

“They will not interfere.” Shukaku’s lips pulled back in a snarl. “Your battle is with _me_!”

Kyuubi had once told Naruto that just as the demons affected their hosts, so did their hosts affect the demons – with their humanity. The bijuu, Kyuubi had said, were pure in intent – they did not kill for the joy of killing, but out of necessity, as a means to an end, like eating. They enjoyed a good battle, but not killing. So when a demon was sealed in a Jinchuuriki, that purity would be corrupted by human emotion, by human greed; the demons would be driven half-mad. It was why Kyuubi had been so insane with the urge to kill, inside Naruto; it was why Shukaku had been crazy with glee in killing. It was not a demon’s true nature, to revel in senseless slaughter for its sake.

It made an odd kind of sense, and Naruto had thought about it for a long while. Then he had discussed it with Gaara. It was what had led to the two of them working on the jutsus that had resulted in the empty bunshins for the demons’ use. Now, so long as they periodically let the bijuu out, keeping their minds separate, neither side would be driven mad by the other anymore. Their chakra was still linked, of course, and the demons were still trapped, since the bunshins could not last long with the demons inside them, but it was enough.

Gaara could think straight now, for one. He could sleep again. Naruto found himself smiling as he remembered watching over the Gaara that had slowly emerged from the wreckage that had been Gaara-and-Shukaku. Helping Gaara adjust to being himself again, being with him as he learned the new reaches of his power now that it wasn’t all tangled and confused – it had been a healing time, both for Gaara and himself. He’d been wanted and needed so completely, for the first time in his life.

Once, Gaara had said to him, _You keep saving me, time and again, and I will never be able to repay such a debt._ But really, Naruto felt that the one who had been saved was himself. When he had left Konoha, he had been hurting emotionally and mentally; when Gaara had brought him bodily back to Suna, he had been dying, physically.

It was Gaara who had healed him inside and out.

“I did not realize that watching people getting beaten up by bloodthirsty demons made you so happy, Naruto.”

Naruto blinked. Then he realized that he was smiling dreamily at the sight of the Rock nins, tattered and bleeding, being toyed with by evilly grinning demons. He coughed. “Just… lost in memories,” he said lamely, not looking at Gaara. He knew that the moment he did, he would start blushing.

“Oops.”

Oops? Naruto looked up and stared at the screaming shinobi flying towards him. Before he could react, a wall of sand sprang up before him, reared back, and batted the shinobi back towards Kyuubi like it was playing ping-pong, with a human ball.

“Thanks!” Kyuubi called, catching the shinobi effortlessly. Then he frowned. “Damn, he’s unconscious.” He dumped them man unceremoniously on the rock he was on. “Shukaku! Are you done yet?”

The other demon looked up from where he was bouncing his victim up and down on a trampoline of sand. “Oh,” he said, and the sand formed a cocoon around the shinobi mid-air. It carried him over to a patch of empty ground and dropped him, knocking him out. “Yes, I am.”

Kyuubi leered. “Good.” He looked over at Naruto. “We’ll pop back into you guys when our bunshins start disintegrating, so head over to the tower first.”

“Will do.” Naruto was talking to empty air, however; Kyuubi had already vanished into the forest on the other side of the river, along with Shukaku. He sighed. Who would have thought that demons would be so horny?

He went to retrieve the unconscious man on the rock, while Gaara crouched down next to the one on the ground. When Naruto returned, the man slung over his shoulder, Gaara had already sliced a shallow cut on his guy’s palm, smearing the blood over the rest of his hand. In short order they were done, and five bloody handprints were on their scrolls.

“That was easy,” Naruto remarked. “Really, this whole week’s been a waste of time.”

“You knew that this exam would be extremely easy for you,” Gaara pointed out.

“Yeah, but not this boring!”

Gaara gave him a Look. “Do not complain.” He raised his eyes to the sky, and a small frown appeared. “We should start making our way to the tower, if we do not want to arrive there out of breath.”

Naruto looked at the sun’s position, and nodded. “Let’s go.” He grinned suddenly. “I can’t wait to find out who I’ll be fighting.”

* * *

_Tick._

One minute left to six o’clock.

_Tick._

Fifty-nine seconds.

_Tick._

As the second hand began its final circle around the clock face, Shikamaru looked around the large hall again, with the statue of the poised hands at one end. Genma stood before it, looking impatient. Above them, in the galleries, were a scattering of shinobi who had failed but had been in good enough shape to make it to the tower, in order to see who had passed.

Standing or sitting on the main floor were those lucky few in question. Neji and Sasuke were there, both standing – Neji with his arms crossed, Sasuke slouching with his hands in his pockets. Shikamaru snorted to himself: they were obviously tired, but to keep up appearances they would rather stand even if it killed them. Shikamaru had never seen the point in creating trouble for yourself, but that was Neji and Sasuke in a nutshell.

There was only one other Mist nin (with a riot of tattoos) standing; almost everyone else was sitting on the ground. There were two Suna nins, talking quietly together. Lee was sitting with Shino, but they weren’t talking – at least, Lee was talking happily at Shino, who was ignoring him. Another female Mist nin was sprawled on her back, apparently napping; a bald Grass nin was meditating. One final Rock nin was being tended to by medics. He was by far the worst off, but the others weren’t unscathed, either – even the best of them looked tired, and had superficial wounds.

Shikamaru’s gaze rose to the galleries. All the Konoha nin who had failed were there. His gaze rested on Hinata – she had been weirdly intent on the open entrance to the hall ever since she had arrived, taken a good look around, and apparently not finding who she was looking for.

Actually, almost everyone there was gazing at the entrance as well. There were a lot of doors that opened into the Tower, but they all led to the central hall, and there was only one entrance to the hall, at the end opposite the hand statutes. And the thought that Shikamaru knew was running through everyone’s minds was – _they can’t possibly have failed… can they?_

Shikamaru looked at the clock. Twenty seconds.

 _Tick_.

Akamaru’s whine echoed through the hall; Kiba suddenly sat up straight as his dog strained its ears towards the entrance. A murmur ran through the crowd; bodies shifted. The bald Grass nin stirred from his meditation, opening his eyes. The lone kunoichi on the ground sat up.

 _Tick_.

Then they all heard it. Footsteps, growing louder. But – only _one_ pair of footsteps? Looks were exchanged all around. Even Shikamaru frowned, puzzled.

 _Tick_.

Agonizingly slow, long seconds passed. Shikamaru counted down silently under his breath.

_Five._

_Four._

_Three._

_Two –_

Kitsune and the Kazekage swept into the hall, and the reason for the sound of only one pair of footsteps became abruptly clear: they were walking so in sync that the sound of their steps had coalesced into one heavy tread.

 _One_.

The clock boomed the hour. The pair halted, waiting, completely unharmed and with no trace of weariness in sight. Gaara crossed his arms in his usual manner, cool and unruffled; Kitsune stood beside him, hands loose by his side, confident.

Genma waited for the rumble of the clock to fade. Then he took the senbon out of his mouth. “Well,” he said irritably, “it’s about fucking time.”

A laugh ran through the hall as those sitting on the ground got to their feet. The medics packed their kits and quietly left.

“The second exam has officially ended. You will have submitted your scrolls when you first entered the tower; your scrolls are undergoing a final check right now, but we’ll proceed on the assumption that there are no problems. Congratulations to the… twelve of you who passed.” Genma sounded anything but congratulatory. “It was a difficult week, but you’re now one step closer to being a jounin.

“See the screen up on the wall? When your scrolls have passed inspection, your names will be entered into a database. We will randomly pair you up for the third part of the tournament, which as you’ve probably guessed is a battle tournament. However, we won’t be following the typical elimination style. Rather, after the first round, we will have a second randomly paired round so that each of you will have a fair chance to show off your skills. Unlike the first round, you’ll only know who you’re fighting right before the battle starts, to see how you do without time to thoroughly research your opponent.

“Now. As you know, the judges comprise of the Hokage and any other Kages who are available at the time of the exam. Usually, when the exams are held in Konoha, there’s only the Kazekage, since Wind country’s the closest and it’s more difficult for the other Kages to travel here. However, since this time the Kazekage is actually _in_ the exam, as well as… other renowned personalities, it seems that anyone who’s anyone in the shinobi world is turning up.”

Genma paused here to look down at the twelve faces turned to him. Then he split into a grin of sadistic glee. “Gentlemen – and lady – I am pleased to say that you have the dubious honour of being the first group of jounin hopefuls in history to be judged by no less than _four_ Kages – the Tsuchikage of Hidden Rock, the Mizukage of Hidden Mist, the Raikage of Hidden Cloud, and of course, the Hokage of Hidden Leaf. All three visiting Kages have travelled far to be here, so you’d better put up a good performance or risk embarrassing yourselves, got that?”

Shikamaru was watching the pair at the back of the small gathering. He noticed the way they stiffened almost imperceptibly; the way their reaction said _Not Good_ before they controlled themselves again. He wasn’t sure anyone else noticed – he had been watching them closely, and he knew that his skill in reading people and interpreting their actions correctly was unusually high.

Raido appeared in a whirl of smoke next to Genma. He tapped the other jounin on the shoulder and nodded once when Genma turned to look at him.

“Okay, boys and girls,” Genma said cheerfully, looking back at the waiting crowd. “Time to face your fate!” He nodded to the screen. “The first pair will be…”

The screens came to life. Digitally rendered names flashed past in green – and then, first one name appeared, and then the other. One after another the pairs were matched, and announced by Genma.

Shikamaru considered each pair thoughtfully. From what he’d heard, Saki of the Mist was more vicious than her other Mist colleagues, which was saying something – Shino would have a hard time against her, but his calculating nature would give him more of an advantage than if, say, someone straightforward like Lee had been her opponent. Neji, on the other hand, was more than a match for Akira of the Grass. Satori of the Rock against Nagasaki of the Sand – Shikamaru didn’t have much of an opinion on that one, since he didn’t know either shinobi that well.

Kitsune against Ume of the Mist was going to be interesting; while Ume didn’t have the reputation for viciousness that Saki did, he was definitely more powerful than she was, and any fighter trained with the brutal methods of the Mist was bound to be more merciless and cruel than an ordinary shinobi. Tsuki of the Sand against his own Kazekage was also bound to be interesting, but in a different way – Shikamaru was interested in the psychological aspects; how would Tsuki deal with having to fight his own leader?

And Lee against Sasuke – in a way, it was like Naruto against Neji all over again. The ones who were looked down on, against the elite. Lee had come a long way, though, and Shikamaru thought that he even had a decent chance of winning – as long as he didn’t let himself get trapped in one of the Sharingan’s genjutsus.

Movement caught his eye. Lee had turned at the news to give Kitsune and Gaara a particularly bright grin. What was even more interesting was that it appeared to be directed at Kitsune, since the assassin nodded once at Lee, while Gaara did not move. Yet another piece to the odd puzzle that was Kitsune.

Shikamaru remembered all too well when the Hokage had summoned him to her office to tell him that the Kazekage was going to be taking the exam, so they would have to deploy more jounins than usual to watch over the exam just in case. And then, when he was about to leave, she had casually said: “Oh, and Kitsune will be taking it too, but you don’t have to worry about him.”

Shikamaru had stared at her. “We don’t have to worry about one of the most famous assassins in the world suddenly deciding to take the jounin exam that the Kazekage just happens to be taking as well?”

Tsunade had waved her hand dismissively. “Relax, he’s not planning to kill anyone.” When he had opened his mouth to ask more, she’d glared at him. “Enough questions already! Go!”

Shikamaru had left without another word – but with a silent determination to solve the mystery that revolved around Kitsune. He hated not knowing things.

Genma was finishing his ramble on the details of the third exam. People began to move as he dismissed them. Shikamaru strolled over to the pair at the back of the group; they turned to look at him. “Gaara-san,” he said quietly.

“Shikamaru-san.” Gaara nodded at him. “Temari sends her regards. She says she will probably be able to come to watch the tournament, but if she does not, the next time it will be your turn to make the trek to our village, and she will wake you up at ungodly hours in the morning to repay the favour incurred while she was here.”

That was unexpected. Shikamaru had to fight back an urge to smile. “It was to help her maximise her days spent here,” he said mildly. “I was simply doing my duty to aid the ambassador from Suna in any way I could.”

Gaara’s eyes narrowed as he looked Shikamaru over; Shikamaru had to actually force himself to stand his ground under that piercing gaze. Then Gaara said, serious and deadly, “I will only say this once. If you hurt Temari, you will have to face me. I hope you understand what that means, Nara Shikamaru.”

Shikamaru choked. “I don’t – I don’t have any intention – I don’t see Temari in _that_ way!”

“Temari… is it? No honorific.” Gaara began to actually _radiate_ doom. “You are on such familiar terms with her, and yet you deny any close relationship? I hope you are not leading my sister on, Nara.”

He was calculating the best way to extricate himself from the situation with the least amount of damage when Kitsune started laughing. Both Gaara and Shikamaru stared at him. “I can’t hold it in anymore!” Kitsune gasped. “The look on your face, Shikamaru…! And Gaara! Doing the big brother threat thing! Oh, god, my stomach hurts from laughing so much.”

Shikamaru wondered a little detachedly if Gaara was going to kill the both of them now.

But to his surprise, Gaara’s killing aura vanished, to be replaced with – a _smile_? It was a very tiny smile, but there it was. Shikamaru’s eyes almost bulged out of his head as Gaara reached up to the slightly taller Kitsune and smacked up on the back of his head. “Idiot,” he said, almost… affectionately.

Kitsune rubbed his head. Even with the disquietingly blank mask, his pout was plain to hear as he said, “But it was funny!”

“Your sense of humour is warped.”

“No it isn’t!”

“Your entire mind is warped.”

“Hey! That’s not true!”

“One only has to look at your fashion sense –”

Now, as everyone knew, Shikamaru was very, very smart. His mind was always busily working. The thing that not many people realized, however, was that he was so smart that his mind worked by itself even when he wasn’t actively thinking. Unlike normal people, his mind didn’t have an ‘off’ switch. And now his thoughts processed the scene in front of him, noted a few relevant points, and then prodded at his memories. His memories reshuffled themselves, threw up a few cards, matched the cards to his current hand and notified his brain, which caused his brain to jump in surprise and send a few sparks to his mouth, which, stunned by the conclusion his mind had come up with, involuntarily said: “Naruto?”

Kitsune froze. Gaara blinked.

“Gaara-san is only this comfortable around very few people,” Shikamaru said, watching the two of them like a hawk. “Namely, his siblings. But Temari told me before that Gaara-san considered Naruto one of his precious people as well, as close to his heart as his siblings are. Then there is the fact that Tsunade-sama isn’t worried about Kitsune at all, meaning that she has to know him and trust him and his word that he’s not out to harm anyone. And just now, the manner in which Kitsune reacted and spoke was exactly like Naruto, even if the voice is different and I can’t see his face. And –”

“Okay, okay, enough already,” Kitsune groaned, and that was very like Naruto, as well. “Man, I thought my acting skills were good!”

“It’s a wonder you lasted this long,” Gaara muttered.

“Hey!”

“At this rate you might as well announce it to the world.”

“Gaara…” Naruto whined. At the same time, Shikamaru said, “You mean other people have already found out? Aside from the Hokage?”

“I accidentally slipped up to Lee and Hinata-chan,” Naruto admitted.

“Every time you meet a friend in close quarters you slip up,” Gaara said to Naruto, scowling. “You are obviously not trying hard enough.”

Shikamaru watched the two of them bicker, conflicting feelings rising in him. On the one hand, he was glad Naruto was back and almost unchanged in personality. On the other hand, since Kitsune would never let anyone impersonate him, it meant that Naruto really _was_ the infamous assassin. Which meant that he was strong almost beyond belief, a far cry from the dead-last of before…

And he had killed. He had killed countless numbers of strong, skilled shinobi.

Shikamaru didn’t want to think like this, but his mind was already busy working how to turn this to Konoha’s advantage – how to use one of his good friends to kill more people, to work behind the scenes for Konoha’s gain – even as he began thinking of how Naruto, as Kitsune, could be controlled, his power leashed. Chess pieces on the chessboard of the world, as if they weren’t real people, in a game where _capture_ meant _death_. Shikamaru closed his eyes briefly, hating this part of himself.

“Hey…”

He looked up. That blank mask was facing him directly, and even if he couldn’t see it, he could _feel_ Naruto’s gaze on him.

“I understand, Shikamaru. I kind of know what’s going on in your head right now.” Naruto sounded a little awkward, but he bulled forward anyway with the recklessness he was known for. “And it’s okay, that’s just how you are, right? Of course, I’m not going to obediently bend to your wishes, but I’m not going to hold it against you for trying. You’re Tsunade-baa-chan’s most valued advisor, after all. It’s like your job.”

“I consider you a friend, Na… Kitsune.” He didn’t know who might be listening in, so it was best not to use Naruto’s name if he could avoid it. “Can’t I agonize about having to think of my friends as weapons?” But he smiled, wryly, to let Naruto know that he appreciated the attempted comfort.

“Ano… Kitsune-san… Gaara-san… Shikamaru-kun.” Hinata had come up to them. She looked nervous, but determined nonetheless. “Is there a problem?”

It was obvious that she was worried about Naruto breaking his cover, and was going to try to help him hide it from Shikamaru. He had to roll his eyes; it seemed that everyone else was more concerned for Naruto than Naruto was. “It’s okay, Hinata. I already guessed, and they already confirmed it.”

“Oh.” Hinata gave him a shy smile. “As expected of you, Shikamaru-kun.”

“No, it’s just that he –” throwing Naruto an exasperated look, “– is as bad at hiding his secrets as ever.”

Hinata laughed, and then covered her mouth guiltily. She looked apologetically at Naruto. “Sorry, Na… Kitsune-san.”

“There is no need to be sorry, Hyuuga-san,” Gaara spoke up while Naruto crossed his arms and sulked. “One need never be sorry for the truth.”

Naruto kicked him. Of course, his foot only got as far as the small wall of sand that sprang up between his foot and Gaara, which made him grumble uncomplimentary words under his breath.

Hinata hesitated, and then gave Gaara a tremulous smile. “You are our ally, Gaara-san, and you have allowed us to call you by your name. You don’t have to stand on formality with me, Gaara-san, especially since you’ve been looking after Naruto-kun all these years, it seems. Please call me Hinata.”

Gaara held her gaze for a moment, and then inclined his head in acknowledgement. “Hinata-san, then,” he said.

She beamed. Shikamaru felt a surge of pride for her, and had to smile – watching over his friends, as he had been doing the past few years, had taught him respect for people like Hinata and Lee, who worked many times as hard as others in order to overcome their deficiencies. And Hinata was smart as well as compassionate – he sometimes had lunches with her to seek her opinion on matters that were troubling him, because his nature prevented him from seeing the human side of things that Hinata always looked at first.

Hinata saw his smile, and smiled back at him. He knew that she understood his pride in her.

“You guys have grown close,” Naruto commented, sounding slightly wistful.

Shikamaru shrugged. Hinata blushed and said, “Shikamaru-kun is weighed by a large burden. I only wish I could help him more.”

See? That was Hinata all over.

Naruto’s wistfulness, however, had given Shikamaru an idea. “How about lunch at my place in, say, two days? That should give Hinata and Lee enough time to recover from their wounds.” He saw that they were all looking at him in confusion at the sudden suggestion. “Nothing serious, definitely no talk about the exam and work and all that. Just some catching-up with friends. My old man’s on a mission, and my mum won’t interrupt us, so we can all do away with disguises and just… be ourselves.”

Hinata lit up. “I think that’s a great idea, Shikamaru-kun! I know Lee-kun will love it, too.”

“Sounds good,” Naruto agreed, and they could all hear the happiness and excitement in his voice. “Gaara?”

The Kazekage nodded. “I do not see a problem with you taking one day off. I will take the time to familiarize myself with –”

“But Gaara-san…” Hinata began in protest, as Naruto turned on Gaara, hands on hips. “What the hell are you talking about?” he demanded. “You’re coming too.” Beside him, Hinata nodded firmly in agreement.

“You should spend more time with your precious people. I will only be in the way. The people you will no doubt discuss are Konoha nins, who I am not well acquainted with.” Gaara’s tone left no room for argument. “Rest assured that I will spend the day productively. In fact, without your presence, the productivity of my day is almost guaranteed.”

Shikamaru snorted, while Hinata giggled. Naruto could see when he was defeated, and so he threw up his hands. “Fine, go be your anti-social self, see if I care,” he said grumpily.

Hinata, however, had not given up. “Perhaps…” she said hesitantly, causing the men to look at her. “Perhaps we could have lunch with Gaara-san… the next day? I could host it. I have my own pavilion in the Hyuuga compound.”

Naruto cheered up. “Yeah, that’s a great idea! I want you to get to know my friends, Gaara,” he told the Kazekage before the other man had a chance to argue. “Just like you wanted me to get to know Kankurou and Temari.”

Gaara, too, knew when he had been defeated. He nodded resignedly. “Thank you for the invitation, Hinata-san.”

She beamed. “It would by my pleasure, Gaara-san.”

The clock chimed the half-hour. Shikamaru grimaced as he remembered his duties. “Okay, I hate to break this up, but I have to report to the Hokage about the results of the exam.” He waved at them lazily. “See you in two days.”

He sauntered away to the chorus of goodbyes, hearing Hinata’s voice fade as she volunteered to tell Lee about the lunches. His mind was already busily working again. This was an interesting development indeed, and now that he knew about Naruto being Kitsune, he could count on another powerful ally on Konoha’s side when something happened.

Because he knew that something _was_ going to happen. He figured that Naruto and Gaara knew it as well, and he would try to find out if they knew _more_ about it. Even if they only knew a little, every little bit helped. Shikamaru was desperate enough that he would accept every titbit with relief.

Konoha was in trouble. Everything he had been hearing lately pointed to that fact. And right now, he had no idea what was going to happen, and so no idea how to stop it – but everyone had faith in him, had faith that he would help them figure out a way through his. Everyone looked to him to save them.

Sometimes, Shikamaru really, really hated being himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, Shikamaru. I do love him, he comes across as a pretty stereotypical character at first but there's so much potential. Hopefully I did him justice within the space of this chapter.
> 
> Randomly, for any Haikyuu! fans, I imagine Shukaku to look and act something like Aobajohsai's Kyouken for some reason.
> 
> Thank you for the kudos and comments! I hope those of you still reading this are still enjoying it!
> 
> As always, come say hi on Twitter **@clarypuff** if you'd like!
> 
> **Ashen Skies**   
>  _"Your entire mind is warped."_


	6. Shades of Pain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Five years ago, Naruto brought Sasuke back, but his only reward was anger and too much loneliness to bear -- and so he chose the other, previously unthinkable road.
> 
> He left.
> 
> Now it is Kitsune, strong and deadly, who returns to his old village with the Kazekage at his side. It is Kitsune who is determined to leave his past behind, but what happens when his past refuses to stay? It is the Kazekage who must be strong for his village and its allies, but what happens when it is Gaara who quietly breaks? When war erupts with Konoha at its heart, their resolve will be put to the test once and for all.

_Hearts will never be practical until they are made unbreakable._

\-- from The Wizard of Oz

* * *

The second exam had left him with a sour taste in his mouth and an increasing incredulity at himself. What on earth had _possessed_ him to say what he’d said? To make the choice that he had made? His reasons had all seemed valid when he’d said them out loud – but now, away from the immediacy and heat of the moment, they didn’t seem all that convincing as they bounced around in his mind.

But he couldn’t take it back. Now that he had said it, in front of witnesses, no less, his pride wouldn’t let him retract his words. He was stuck with his decision, for better or for worse.

To say the least, the day after the second exam had ended found Sasuke in a very bad mood.

He stalked down the streets of Konoha, hands shoved in pockets, with his trademark scowl on his face. People got out of his way without being prompted; in recent years they had become all too used to the Uchiha’s temper. The official story was that Sasuke had been kidnapped by Orochimaru, so the village still treasured the one they saw as the last surviving member of one of their proudest bloodlines, but their adoration of him had been worn down by his constant black moods.

As Sasuke drew near training ground seven, he heard the sounds of another shinobi practicing, and his dark mood darkened even further. He didn’t know why he had chosen the training grounds where he, Sakura and Naruto had first fought against Kakashi, and he didn’t care to think about it. He just went there, and by now the other Konoha nin knew well enough to use other grounds.

The final straw to Sasuke’s mood was when he saw who, exactly, was practicing on his grounds.

The Kazekage’s skin was as pale as ever, but it wasn’t the sickly pallor from years ago, rather a healthy, almost glowing fairness. His days of relying only on his sand were gone – his taijutsu was lightning fast and practically flawless, hardly any wasted movements. And his stamina looked improved, too; his clothes, already fitting, were stuck to his body with sweat, and his bare skin glistened with it, but he didn’t look tired at all. Not that there was much bare skin – he wore loose pants and a tank top – but it was more than he normally revealed.

Sasuke didn’t recognize the golden-eyed man that Gaara was fighting with, but he could sense the deadly killing intent. Whoever he was, his aura was choked with blood and death.

He watched them spar, his grudging admiration of their movements warring with his dislike of the Kazekage. Gaara was one of the things Sasuke didn’t like to think much about, but when he did, he could easily list down the reasons why he hated the redheaded man so much.

Gaara had easy access to immense power, something that Sasuke was insanely jealous of. Gaara had almost destroyed Konoha, but it had been shrugged off so easily by everyone – whereas Sasuke’s almost-betrayal left him mistrusted by those in the know, even until now, even though his so-called friends tried their hardest to pretend it never happened. Gaara was unstable, and had slaughtered so many, so often, and yet he had been made Kazekage – while Sasuke’s one time of weakness had made him outcast.

And Gaara reminded him of Naruto.

He forced his thoughts off that beaten track.

It came to Sasuke then that the sounds of fighting had stopped. He looked up. The gold-eyed man was nowhere to be found, and the Kazekage was right before him, staring at him, green eyes unreadable. “Uchiha,” he said, sounding perfectly composed and not in the least out of breath. “You are up early.”

“So are you.” Sasuke winced internally at how childish that retort had sounded, and scrambled for a better reply – and after Shikamaru had pulled him aside and warned him to have a care of Gaara’s position, however much he disliked the other man, Sasuke figured that his reply now had better be diplomatic, if not friendly. “You’ve been here long?”

“Only since dawn, an hour ago.” Gaara’s voice was as neutral as his.

“Your friend seems to have disappeared.”

“Yes. He… does not like strangers.” There was a hint of an ironic smile in Gaara’s eyes that Sasuke didn’t quite understand. “You are here to practice as well?”

“Yeah, I am.” He shrugged, letting some of his annoyance creep into his voice as he said, “I usually have this place to myself. No one else comes here.”

“I see.” Try as Sasuke might, he could hear absolutely no inflection to that voice. “Do you wish to practice alone, then, or do you want a sparring partner?”

That made him stare. “You’re offering to practice with me?”

“Until my own sparring partner comes, yes.” Gaara seemed to notice the question that was on the tip of Sasuke’s tongue, and added, “My… friend, just now, was merely passing by and I asked him to spar for a while with me, until my actual partner comes.”

“That would be Kitsune, right?”

“Yes.” Gaara looked at him coolly. “A purely taijutsu spar. Your answer?”

Sasuke hesitated, and then smiled humourlessly. What the hell, why not? “Fine.”

Gaara nodded, and turned. Sasuke shrugged off his outer clothing, leaving only his own black tank top and shorts, and then followed him to the centre of the field. They settled into battle stances, sizing each other up.

“Ready?” Gaara said.

“Yeah.” Sasuke felt himself smirk. “I’m not going to go easy on you, Kazekage or not.”

Gaara’s gaze sharpened. “We’ll see,” he said.

The implied dismissal in those two words made Sasuke’s anger spike. Without another word, he flash-stepped to where the Kazekage was, bringing his hand down on his neck –

Or where his neck used to be. Gaara had dropped to a crouch, one leg sweeping out to hit the back of Sasuke’s knees –

Only Sasuke wasn’t there anymore, either. He’d leapt into the air, twisting his body in a whirlwind motion, aiming for Gaara’s head –

Which was now a fair distance away, safely out of range. Sasuke landed. Gaara straightened. They stared at each other.

And then they both blurred, as they resumed their attacks.

The sound of flesh hitting flesh echoed in the early morning air, but other than the occasional grunt that signified a blow well-aimed knocking the breath out of someone, their battle was eerily silent. There were no taunts, no curses – just a single-minded focus on defeating each other. Five minutes passed – then ten. Twenty. As the hour slipped past, neither party showed signs of giving in.

And the more they fought, the more angry Sasuke found himself becoming. Normally, a taijutsu workout or spar would be cathartic, leaving his mind pleasantly blank, almost like a form of moving meditation. But this time, he found the tension building up, becoming ugly. His blows grew harder, and harder, until they were more vicious than any practice match warranted.

Soon, he saw Gaara’s eyes tighten every time he landed a blow. The perverse pleasure from the sight made Sasuke aim for more tender places – the Kazekage’s torso. He began aiming all his blows around that area, repeatedly, so that each successive blow would hurt more.

Gaara was more delicate in build, and so he was faster – but Sasuke was stronger, physically more powerful, and Gaara’s speed wasn’t enough. Furthermore, he had only begun working on taijutsu in the past few years, whereas Sasuke had the advantage of having taijutsu forms drilled into him from childhood.

It meant that Gaara was slowly but surely losing. Sasuke couldn’t land blows on him often, but it was often enough. The Kazekage’s flinching became more obvious, but he silently continued fighting, his face expressionless.

And suddenly Sasuke couldn’t take it anymore. When Gaara blocked a roundhouse kick, he saw his chance. Twisting his torso, he flipped so that the momentum of his first kick put an enormous force into his second, spinning kick, coming in from under Gaara’s guard and landing solidly.

There was the _crack_ of a broken rib. Gaara flew back a few paces, and landed on his back.

That muted gasp of pain was immensely satisfying.

Sasuke landed lightly on his feet, and stared at that still figure, far enough that he couldn’t see his face. They stood there in a silent tableau for a long moment. Still Gaara did not move.

Sasuke pushed back the tiny stab of self-hatred at how _vindictive_ he’d become. Instead, he began walking over to Gaara. “Are you getting up anytime soon? Don’t think we’re done yet. A shinobi has to fight through the pain –”

His breath was knocked out of him as a tidal wave of sand swept him up in the air, tightening around him, trapping him. Gaara sat up, holding his ribs, and his green eyes were shadowed. For the first time since they started, Sasuke felt a tiny spike of fear – he knew this move.

He knew what move came after it.

“ _Gaara!_ ”

Then Kitsune was there, running towards them, stopping in between. He took in the situation at a glance, and then turned to the redhead on the ground. “Gaara,” he said, and there was anger in his voice. “I don’t know what happened, but just because he landed a hit on you during a friendly spar isn’t any reason to kill him. I thought your control’s better than that.”

Gaara’s gaze switched to Kitsune. Sasuke had thought his expression blank before, but it was nothing compared to the utter emptiness in his face now. Then he slowly got up, and even though it must have hurt like hell, with his broken rib and what Sasuke knew was an unbelievably bruised torso, still nothing showed on his face, in his eyes. Even his movements looked natural, as if he was unhurt.

He made a small movement with his hand. The sand dissolved, and Sasuke just barely managed to catch himself as he dropped, avoiding an ungraceful fall onto his butt. Gaara regarded both he and Kitsune for another heartbeat, silently.

Then he was gone in a swirl of sand.

Kitsune started, like he wanted to go after the other man, but then he stopped. With a heavy sigh he turned that blank white mask to Sasuke, who glared back. He hated Kitsune on principle, because he was always together with Gaara, but there was also something about his very presence that rubbed Sasuke the wrong way.

“He didn’t hurt you, did he?”

Sasuke could tell that Kitsune was trying very hard to sound neutral. He shrugged. “Not that it’s any of your business, but no.”

“What did you do?”

At that, Sasuke felt his lips drawing back in a sneer. “We were just sparring,” he said. “Can I help it if he’s a sore loser?”

He could feel Kitsune’s anger rising to match his own. “Gaara isn’t so easily riled. He’s been perfecting his control over his power and his anger over the years. You must have done something to provoke him so much that he reacted like that!”

“What, giving him a few bruises? Excuse me for actually giving my best in a fight! If he wanted to remain unhurt, then he shouldn’t be a shinobi!”

“He’s a better shinobi than you’ll _ever_ be!”

That hit closer to home than Sasuke was comfortable with. It made him lash out. “He’s a murderous psychopath! If he can’t even control his temper in a practice spar, I pity the villagers who have to suffer him as their leader!”

Kitsune snarled. “My god, you’re the most –” He cut himself off mid-sentence with an impressive force of will. “You know what? Forget it. You’re not worth my time.”

Sasuke sneered again. “And you’re not worth mine. The great assassin Kitsune, not even a jounin? What a joke. When you’re done stealing the place of others who really need the jounin rank, don’t show your face in Konoha again.”

He could sense the killing intent radiating off Kitsune, and a part of him ached for it, wanted the fight that would surely ensue – but Kitsune took a step back. Then another. Then, with an angry, wordless snarl, he turned and vanished into the distance, leaping across the rooftops of Konoha in a blink.

Sasuke stood there, trembling with the adrenaline coursing through his veins.

It had been a long time since he’d felt so _alive._

And then he realized what he’d just done, and the self-loathing came crashing back.

* * *

On hindsight, Naruto really should have gone for a couple of runs – or a hundred – to cool down before returning to the suite of rooms that he shared with Gaara. But he had been angry, and frustrated, and full of conflicting feelings about Sasuke, and the whole mix meant that he wasn’t thinking straight.

So when Naruto stormed into the suite, slamming the door behind him, and barged into Gaara’s room, he wasn’t in the best frames of mind. Gaara was lying still on the bed, ignoring Naruto, and that only made him angrier.

“Look,” he snapped at the silent figure. “You don’t like Sasuke, he doesn’t like you, fair enough. So that’s all the more reason you should have _stayed away_ from him, not entered into a sparring match! That’s just asking for trouble! And since even _I_ can see that, it’s got to be pretty damn obvious!”

There was no reply, no movement.

Naruto wasn’t deterred. “And Sasuke’s no match for you. No matter what he did, you should never have used _Sabaku Kyuu_ , are you insane? You lost control, fine, but even then you shouldn’t have used a move that practically begs you to complete it with complete annihilation of your opponent! You could have just swatted him away with sand or something!”

Still nothing.

“Are you even listening?”

“Go away, Naruto.” Gaara’s voice was tired.

Naruto felt worry at that trace of weariness – if it showed in Gaara’s voice, then he was either making a conscious effort, or it was so overwhelming that he couldn’t help it. This was probably a case of the latter, but this time, Naruto felt justified in pushing his worry away. He was _angry_ , damn it, and he had a right to be angry.

“I’m not done. Look, Gaara, Sasuke’s a bastard. But no matter how much I don’t like him, I’m not about to kill him! He’s on his second chance and he’s doing pretty damn well. He rejected Orochimaru, remember? And if he’s not being all friendly with the others, Sakura and all, he’s not actively pushing them away. He’s trying in that weird way of his, and I kind of get that, and it can’t be easy for him either. You should know how it feels, to struggle like that. So just leave him alone from now on, and stop provoking him, so we can all get some peace!”

“Alright.”

“And even if he – uh.” Naruto blinked. “What?”

“I said, alright. I will avoid the Uchiha from now on.” The weariness was gone; now Gaara’s voice was just empty. “Is that enough for you, Uzumaki? Are you done?”

That stung. Naruto opened his mouth to snap back, and then closed it again, lost for words. “Uh… yeah.” He paused. “Are you okay?”

“I am fine.” Those three words were clipped. “I wish to rest. Leave.”

Some of the lingering anger flared up again at that curt dismissal. “Fine,” Naruto snapped. “Some of us have got things to do and lives to lead.” He spun on his heel and marched out the room, slamming the door behind him again. It was sadly unsatisfying.

Some ramen would be good, Naruto decided. There were no food stands in Suna – too much sand flying around – so the only ramen he could get there was in restaurants, and those weren’t good enough to be worth their price. Ichiraku was still the best, in all the places Naruto had travelled. He would get some ramen to cool himself off.

And then, maybe, he could do something about the guilt that refused to leave him be.

* * *

The blinds were drawn tight, and only the faintest line of sunlight illuminated a strip of the wooden floor. The room was dark, quiet, and cool. Naruto’s voice, and footsteps, had long faded away.

Naruto…

Just thinking that name cause Gaara’s heart to ache, all over again.

It was a feeling that he was fast becoming used to.

The ache was different from anything he had felt before. It wasn’t sharp, like the pain of his broken rib, mending second by second with the regenerative power that all Jinchuuriki had. It wasn’t dull and throbbing, like the huge bruise that his entire torso had become – he could feel the extent of the tender flesh, and no area from above his hips to somewhere in the middle of his ribs was spared. No, this ache was like a void, sucking at his emotions and his breath.

It was the ache of _loss_ , and it grew stronger each time Gaara felt it.

Naruto was slipping away from him, slowly but surely. Ever since they had come to Konoha, Gaara had seen it. As Kitsune, Naruto could be the consummate actor, fooling the world, but suddenly his old friends were discovering his identity left and right – it could only be Naruto’s unconscious desire to have them close again asserting itself. Then there was that incident with his former teammates, in the Forest, where he had been beside himself with worry for the girl that he said he could not stand, where he had been full of joy for the boy that he said he hated.

Then there was the very exam itself – why else would Naruto want to become a jounin, when he was already Kitsune? Oh, he’d told Gaara what he and the Hokage had talked about, true enough… but Gaara knew what that light in his eyes signified, whenever he talked about his home village.

And then there was this morning. Naruto had taken one look and assumed that Gaara had lost control, that Uchiha was innocent of any blame. Gaara would be the first to admit that yes, he had lost control a little because Shukaku had been screaming for blood in his head… but he had not used his sand until then. He had stuck with purely taijutsu moves, even as he was losing. Towards the end, there had been the madness of bloodlust in Uchiha’s eyes – a look that Gaara recognized all too well – but he had borne the pain mutely, and honoured the rules of their match. _Pain_ was not a valid reason to call off a match, after all.

And he would not have used the _Sabaku Sousou_. He would not have crushed Uchiha. He’d only wanted to immobilize the other man, while he recovered, because he was afraid that the Uchiha would not stop.

Before this morning, Gaara would have said, if asked, that Naruto would understand. That Naruto believed in his reformation, in his hard-won control. That Naruto had _faith_ in him. Before this morning, Gaara had harboured hope that Naruto felt for him with the same depth of feeling that he felt for Naruto. He had harboured hope that they would return to Suna together. Naruto had come to call Suna _home_ , after all, had assured him that he felt more comfortable in Suna than in Konoha.

But everything was changing. Everything _had_ changed.

And Gaara knew better than to hope.

Because hope blinded you until you were forced to see the truth, and that moment was more painful than any wound in the world. Hope made you a fool. He had been that fool, before – once, with Yashamaru, once more with Naruto, and betrayal had come in the form of a failed assassination attempt, and words that cut deep. He would not be so foolish again as to trust, and to hope.

_You should know how it feels, to struggle like that._

He knew. He knew exactly how it felt.

And that was why he knew that it was better to come to terms with the loss, bit by bit, than to have it hit you full in the face.

If he could only have Naruto as a friend, then so be it.

Alone in his bed, Gaara closed his eyes, shutting out the shadows on the ceiling. There was the sharp pain of his ribs, and the dull pain of his torso, but overwhelming either one of them was the empty ache in his chest, growing, growing. He drew in a shuddering breath.

He did not cry, but only because he did not think he would be able to stop.

* * *

Sasuke found the door easily; he was surprised that there were no guards. But then, Gaara hadn’t come in his official capacity. Even so, he was still the Kazekage… but that wasn’t his problem. He should be thankful that there were no guards.

What would he say to them? _I’m just dropping by to check on your Kage who I just beat up mercilessly, so can you let me pass? Thanks._

Yeah, right.

He scowled at the wooden door. The innkeeper had hesitated at giving him the room number of the Kazekage and Kitsune, but Sasuke had played the Uchiha card, and the innkeeper figured no one was insane enough to try to do anything to the Kazekage and Kitsune, anyway.

If only he’d known.

Sasuke sighed to himself. He was stalling. God, he was pathetic.

He raised his hand to knock on the door, but was surprised when it gave easily as his knuckles brushed it. Huh. He looked down at the lock – it was busted, like someone had slammed it with such force that it had ruptured. Damn, not good.

Cautiously he pushed the door open. No Kitsune, no Gaara. He stepped in, and looked around – everything seemed fine, nothing broken or turned into sand or anything. Okay, this was slightly more promising.

There was one open doorway that led to a mini kitchen, and two doorframes with doors. One was open, showing a messy and empty room; the other was closed. That was probably Gaara’s room, then.

Sasuke took a deep breath, and then stalked over to the door. He hated doing this, hated the blow to his pride, but – _not_ doing it would be wrong, and that was a blow to his pride, too. He was damned if he did it and damned if he didn’t, so he had chosen the path that seemed more… right. He smiled bitterly; Sakura would be proud. Kakashi would be proud. _He_ … that idiot… would be proud.

He knocked.

There was no answer. He frowned.

“Gaara-san?”

Nothing.

Sasuke’s scowl deepened. What the hell? He reached out for the knob and turned it, and pushed the door open – or tried to. There was something solid blocking the door from moving. He looked down, and saw sand. Okay… so clearly Gaara didn’t want to be disturbed.

But he was already here, and he was going to do this whether Gaara wanted to or not, damn it!

Glaring at the door, he reinforced his shoulder with chakra, and then bodily slammed the door. It gave a little more – enough for what he wanted to do.

Sasuke dug in his pocket for the medicinal balm he’d bought, and shoved it through the crack between the door and doorframe. “Gaara-san…” It sounded weird as hell when he said it, but he didn’t know how else to call the Kazekage, and he was not on pain of death going to honour him by using ‘Kazekage’, or worse, ‘Kazekage-sama’.

“Gaara-san. I’m only going to say this once. I lost control of myself, earlier, and I’m… I apologize.” There, he’d said it. “I went too far for a mere sparring match. Anyway, I know that you must be in a hell lot of pain right now from the bruising and the rib. There’s a balm on the floor, it’s a pain reliever. You should get the rib checked, in any case, but they won’t be able to heal it or the bruises completely in such a short time. Hence the medicine.”

Silence.

“I’ll be going now.”

He had already turned, and taken a step forward, when a quiet voice said, “Thank you.” It was so soft that he wasn’t sure if he really heard it, but Sasuke felt less ridiculous anyway. At least he hadn’t been talking to an empty room.

As he left the inn, Sasuke decided that his rash decision had been a good one. He felt less like a loser, for one thing. And it hadn’t been as demeaning as he’d thought it would be, to admit that he had been wrong. In fact, being able to make some sort of amends felt pretty damn good.

It made Sasuke think. The right path, huh… just now, in that inn, he’d felt something like what he’d felt back in the Forest, when he’d made his decision. A feeling like he was doing the right thing, even if it cost him what he’d always thought was important – power, his pride as an Uchiha.

The same feeling when he’d first protected Naruto, all those long years ago, when they had been fighting Haku in his cage of mirrors.

Ah, hell.

Sasuke decided to go back to the training grounds and work himself into oblivion. Perhaps then, these stupid thoughts would stop running through his head.

* * *

“He must have sent this immediately after the second part of the exam.”

“That means he thinks the threat is very serious.”

“And very urgent.” Temari frowned. “I’m inclined to agree.”

Kankurou nodded. “I’m not as good at the political stuff as you are, but even I know that four Kages – five, if you count Gaara – in one place is just asking for trouble.”

“There have been inter-village Kage conferences before,” Temari said absently, “but I know what you mean.”

“In the exams, there’s nothing that can be considered real security.” Kankurou made a face. “Ensuring that Suna’s well-guarded is already damn hard, I’m up to my eyeballs dealing with problems as head of our forces, so I know that there’s no way Konoha’s going to be able to come up with any near adequate security arrangements when foreign shinobi start pouring in.”

“Plus, four Kages,” Temari said with a wince.

“Five,” Kankurou reminded her gloomily. “And the Great Five at that. Akatsuki’s going to have a field day.”

“Plus, Orochimaru. He’s going to be pissed that Gaara squashed his three spies.”

They both sighed.

“Okay, how much of our forces can be spared?” Temari said briskly.

“Maybe a fifth. Another fifth on standby at the most. Konoha may be our ally, but Suna’s safety is still our priority, and I don’t want any surprise attacks here.”

“A fifth should be enough. That’s about… what, ten jounins?”

“Eight. I’m going to leave the ANBU out of this. Eight jounins, and about thirty chuunins.”

“Alright. We’ll have to choose the teams that will go, and notify those on standby.”

“If we have to deploy the standby teams, it’ll mean that Konoha’s falling.” Kankurou looked grim. “I don’t want to sacrifice our shinobi, so I propose that we make the standby team’s priority to aid where you can, but mostly retrieve.”

Temari sighed again, and rubbed her face with a tired hand. “Let our allies fall or sacrifice our people. Damn it. How does Gaara _do_ this? I can’t wait for him to get back and take over again.”

Kankurou grinned. “Well, for one, he’s a guy. We guys are more cold-hearted and logical.”

“Excuse me?” Temari glared at him. “Did you just accuse me of being some soft-hearted girl?”

“You _are_ a girl.”

“Who’s the one Gaara chose to handle all the _real_ work, I’d like to know?”

“Hey! My work’s real, okay?”

“But mostly brainless.” Temari stabbed at the papers in front of her. “ _This_ is the work that needs a clear, logical mind and ruthless decision-making.”

Kankurou snorted. “Yeah, wrapping pretty words in diplomatic talk that essentially means nothing.”

They glared at each other. And then they cracked up laughing.

It was a while before they sobered again, and when they did, Kankurou stood. “I’ll leave you to write to Konoha, then. I’m off to see who we’re going to send.”

“Kankurou.” Temari’s quiet voice stopped him as he reached out for the doorknob. He looked back to his sister to see her torn expression. “If anything happens, I don’t feel good leaving Gaara there to fight with only eight of our jounins and some chuunins at his back. Should one of us…”

“Gaara would kill us. He’d say that we have a duty first and foremost to Suna.” Kankurou gave her a tired smile. “Remember how he was when he forbid us to accompany him to the exams? I’m not going to argue against that. Besides… he has that idiot Naruto with him. And Naruto’s worth a good number of jounins.”

“I know that. But it’s also Naruto that I’m worried about.” Temari lowered her eyes to the table, staring unseeingly at the wood. “He still loves Konoha. I’m afraid he’ll do all sorts of reckless things, because it’s Konoha in trouble… and Gaara will have to be the one to cover him. Gaara will do anything for Naruto, you know that. And if Naruto is going to sacrifice himself for Konoha…”

_Then Gaara will sacrifice himself for Naruto._

The silence stretched.

“It won’t come to that,” Kankurou said at last. He dredged up a reassuring smile. “They’re both amazing fighters. And if worst comes to worst, the other Kages will fight, too, and any one of them is powerful as hell. Five Kages, and Kitsune, and lots of jounins, and certainly a number of ANBU level Kage bodyguards – the fight might not be easy, but it damn well won’t be a disaster.”

Temari sighed. “I know all that. I just worry, that’s all.”

“You think I don’t? But we have our own jobs to do. Suna needs us here, in Gaara’s absence. _Gaara_ needs us here, so he won’t have to worry about Suna, and can concentrate on fighting.” Kankurou’s smile this time was more firm. “For Gaara, Temari. For Suna. We just have to do what we can from here.”

She nodded. “You’re right.” Then she gave him a weaker version of her old smirk, but still her old smirk nevertheless. “You have a brain in there somewhere, brother mine. How odd.”

“Oh, shut up.” Grinning to himself at his sister’s laughter, he left her office.

But once out of Temari’s sight, Kankurou felt his smile fade. Because he shared Temari’s worries, but he also knew the truth of his own words. He knew that he and Temari _had_ to stay in Suna – but it rankled. He wanted nothing more than to run off to Konoha, so that if anything happened, he could knock his stupid little brother out and drag him back to Suna. Maybe even that idiot Naruto, too.

After years of having no conscience at all, trust Gaara to develop one of the strongest senses of honour and loyalty that Kankurou had ever seen.

_Gaara… you’d better not be an idiot and do something self-sacrificing,_ Kankurou thought. _Suna’s well on its way to accepting you as their Kazekage, and your people are even starting to love you. Don’t do anything stupid for a village that’s not your own, however selfish this may sound._

_And don’t do anything stupid for a man who might never be able to hold you, and only you, in his heart – the way he’s already in yours._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Gaara... quietly pining and suffering. Don't get too mad at Naruto and Sasuke, though! Sasuke's trying very hard as well to change his ways, which is always difficult when you're so set in your thinking and lifestyle, and Naruto's going by instinct as always and not exactly using his brain. He's surrounded by memories of the past when in Konoha, and so he instinctively remembers how the old Gaara used to be like...
> 
> For those still here reading, thank you and I hope you're still enjoying the story! Please do leave a kudos or better yet a comment :D 
> 
> As always, come say hi on Twitter **@clarypuff** if you'd like!
> 
> **Ashen Skies**   
>  _"Your entire mind is warped."_


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